The Hawks have vowed to tighten up operations and squeeze Shepherd Bushiri for whatever he’s got.

Why is Shepherd Bushiri and his wife facing fraud charges?

The self-proclaimed prophet, Bushiri, and his wife, Mary, are currently facing fraud and money laundering charges concerning a string of unlawful financial transactions from 2015.

Read – “We’re under immense orchestrated attacks” – Bushiri speaks out on fraud case

“The Hawks’ case against the pair concerns alleged offences of fraud, money laundering and contravention of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (POCA). The crimes were committed from 2015 in relation to Exchange Control Regulations related to foreign currency in an amount of $1,147,200 (about R15.3m).



“The couple who run several business enterprises in South Africa and abroad are expected to appear before the Pretoria Commercial Crime Court on Monday,” Hawks’ Brigadier Mulaudzi stated.

The couple is currently out on R200 000 bail. Bushiri and his wife, led by a legal team that consists of the infamous Advocate Barry Roux, are due to appear in court on Friday, 10 May.

As reported by EWN, Brigadier Hangwani Malaudzi has revealed that the Hawks have applied to have some of Bushiri’s prized assets seized.

Read – Pastor Bushiri recruits the services of Barry Roux in fraud case

Why are the Hawks attempting to seize Shepherd Bushiri’s jet?

This includes the televangelist’s R20-million private jet. The Hawks are confident, according to Brigadier Malaudzi, that the application to have the Asset Forfeiture Unit seize the jet will be approved based on the unlawful nature of how Bushiri acquired the jet.

“It involves the case that we’ve been working on. We did say that it involves issues that we are looking at in terms of money laundering, fraud and corruption, so the jet is part of the belief that is the cause of all these problems,” The Hawks’ spokesperson stated.

If the leader of the Enlightened Christian Gathering Church does not counter the application by Friday, the aircraft will be absorbed by the state.

Reports suggest that the jet is currently being held at Lanseria Airport, in Johannesburg.