Shepard Bushiri extradition case back in court
The Shepherd Bushiri and wife, Mary, extradition case is expected to return to the Lilongwe Magistrate Court on June 17.
This comes after South African government, through the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), applied to have a review of the order for witnesses to testify while in their country of South Africa.
According to a notice that The Daily Times has seen, all parties are expected to appear before the Chief Resident Magistrate Court on June 17 2022.
“Let all parties appear before the Chief [Resident] Magistrate court on the 17th Day of June 2022, 9.30 o’clock, to hear an application from the Republic of South Africa, the registering state for the magistrate to refer the matter to the High Court on correction of deposition in South Africa” the notice reads.
The matter comes after the High Court ordered that proceedings should continue.
In a judgement delivered virtually in February, Judge Redson Kapindu gave several directives, including that South Africa-based witnesses be physically present.
DPP Steve Kayuni is expected to ask the court to allow depositions to be taken in SA court as immigration officers that helped the suspects get residence permits have been dismissed from their jobs by the SA government.
“Indeed, the honourable court has set the 17th June as the date for the hearing of State application in this matter. All court processes were filed earlier; we have just been waiting for the honourable court to grant [us] the hearing date,” Kayuni said.
In his ruling, Kapindu said the magistrate should be the one to open and entertain an application for a virtual hearing in appropriate circumstances.
Lawyer representing the Bushiris, Wapona Kita, said they still maintain their position that witnesses from South Africa must appear in a Malawian court and that the virtual hearing is just an alternative.
Bushiri and his wife are wanted in South Africa in connection with allegations of fraud and money laundering of funds amounting to R102 million.
The couple is accused of fleeing to Malawi a few days after the Pretoria Central Magistrate Court granted them R200,000 bail each.
