Bushiri lawyers ask for magistrate’s recusal in extradition case

The extradition case of Enlightened Christian Gathering (ECG) church leader Shepherd Bushiri and his wife, Mary, has been adjourned to next week Monday, 15 March, after the couple’s lawyer requested the magistrate handling the case recuse himself.

Bushiri and his wife appeared in the Lilongwe Magistrate’s Court on Monday, 8 March, after Malawi received a formal extradition request from the South African government on 4 December.

READ MORE: Cops detained Bushiri’s lawyers for corruption, intimidation say Hawks

The couple skipped the country in November last year after they were granted bail of R200,000 each by the Pretoria Central Magistrate’s Court, citing safety and security concerns and claiming they would not get a fair trial in South Africa.

They are facing charges of fraud and money laundering case of about R102 million.

According to Malawi publication, The Nation, the Bushiris’ lawyer, Wapona Kita, requested an adjournment to allow them time to file documents in effort to get chief resident magistrate Patrick Chirwa to recuse himself.

The lawyers say Chirwa granted the state the warrant of arrest it used to arrest Bushiri which they are challenging.
The court has allowed the defense to make the application within two days and the case has been adjourned to March 15, 2021 at 1:30pm.

— NationOnline (@NationOnlineMw) March 8, 2021

Kita argued Chirwa was not fit to handle the case and that his clients were yet to be served with the extradition request.

It is reported that the magistrate stood in for a colleague who is sick.

The lawyer further alleged that Chirwa had granted the state the warrant of arrest used to effect the arrest of the Bushiris.

ALSO READ: Fugitive Bushiri takes on Malawian government

The couple had previously been granted permission for a court injunction stopping them from being rearrested.

The High Court Civil Division in Lilongwe also adjourned the inter-partes hearing on Bushiri’s application to later this month  due to the state having filed their documents late.

The High Court has adjourned the interpartes’ hearing on Shepherd Bushiri’s application to stop the state from arresting him. Bushiri’s lawyer Wapona Kita says Justice Kenyetta Nyirenda adjourned the matter to later this month because the state had filed documents late.

— NationOnline (@NationOnlineMw) March 8, 2021

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