Nigerian pastor Omotoso re-arrested in South Africa month after rape acquittal

Timothy Omotoso, a Nigerian televangelist, has been rearrested in South Africa over alleged violations of the immigration act.

Omotoso was rearrested on Saturday by South African authorities in East London, a city in the country.

Fannie Masemola, national commissioner of the South African Police Service (SAPS), confirmed the cleric’s arrest.

Masemola said Omotoso will appear in court on Monday over “violation of the immigration act”.

“This morning at 05:00 in East London, members of the Department of Home Affairs Immigration Inspectorate together with the South African Police Services arrested Omotoso in the town just after the church,” the police commissioner said.

“He will be facing charges related to violation of the immigration act and will be appearing in court on Monday.

“Home affairs will elaborate more on charges. He is being arrested for violating the immigration act.”

THE RAPE ACQUITTAL

Omotoso is the senior pastor of Jesus Dominion International, which is based in Durban, South Africa. He is also the founder of Tim Omotoso Global Outreach and Ancient of Day Broadcasting Network.

Several young women had accused the cleric of luring them into his home in Umhlanga, a town in South Africa, where he allegedly molested them.

He was arrested over the allegations in April 2017, shortly after he landed at an airport in the country.

In April, a high court in the Eastern Cape division of South Africa acquitted the cleric of charges bordering on rape and human trafficking after eight years in jail.

Delivering the judgment, Irma Schoeman, the trial judge, ruled that the state prosecutor did not prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.

Schoeman held that the prosecutor failed to properly cross-examine the accused, adding that “it was as if cross-examination never even took place”.

The judge said that although she did not believe the evidence of the cleric, the onus rests on the prosecutor to prove that the accused was guilty.

The failure of the prosecutor in the case had been widely criticised in South Africa.