The racketeering, trafficking in persons, rape, and sexual assault case against controversial televangelist Timothy Omotoso and his two co-accused, Lusanda Solani and Zikiswa Sitho, has been adjourned to April for judgement.
Judgement is expected to be delivered nearly eight years after the initial arrest of the accused.
According to Eastern Cape National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson, Luxolo Tyali, Omotoso and his two South African co-accused are facing at least 32 counts in the court.
“It is alleged that Omotoso, who was addressed as ‘the man of God’, was the leader of the Jesus Dominion International (JDI) church and his co-accused were his assistants. JDI had major branches in South Africa, Nigeria, and Israel, with Durban being its headquarters in the country.
“The complainants were either congregants, employees or persons selected to take part in the activities of the church when they were recruited under the pretext that they would benefit spiritually or improve the quality of their lives. Omotoso allegedly directly or indirectly through his co-accused, paid and arranged for the complainants to travel to his hotel, Durban, Israel, or Nigeria,” Tyali said.
Once at the destination, Tyali explained, the complainants were allegedly instructed to switch off their phones and “told not to contact male companions and were to further abide by his instructions”.
“The complainants and other female church members were allegedly kept in one room where they also slept. Omotoso would allegedly select one of the complainants to go to his private bedroom where he raped or sexually assaulted them,” he added.
Wheels of justice
Omotoso has tried on several occasions to have the case either dismissed or declared a mistrial – causing delays in the carriage of justice.
“The judgement will mark a remarkable milestone the case that has been marred by delays for almost eight years since the arrest of the trio.
“It follows a decision on previous applications by the televangelist for five special entries for a mistrial. Including an application made on 16 January 2024, where the defence made an application for the judge to reconsider her previous judgment on the application for discharge according to Section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act.
“Judge Irma Schoeman had previously dismissed their application for discharge, and the state was ready to proceed with the remaining proceedings in the trial, meaning that the accused must present their case and they will be subject to cross-examination by the state,” Tyali said.
The NPA spokesperson acknowledged that the delays led to some of the complainants choosing to withdraw from the case.
“The numerous delays in the trial since the arrest of the Nigerian national, Omotoso, in April 2017, caused some witnesses to no longer want to proceed with giving evidence as they indicated they have since moved on with their lives and are not interested in reliving their experiences in court.
“That has led to the reduction of the charges from 63,” he said.
Despite this, the prosecution remained determined to see the case to finalisation.
“The state remains committed to ensuring that this case is finalised as soon as possible so that justice is served for the victims and believes that even on this case it has presented enough evidence to for the accused persons to be found guilty,” Tyali said.
The three accused are expected back in court for judgement on 2 April.
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