Prophet Shepherd Bushiri the head of Enlightened Christian Gathering Church was last week week involved in a 3 hour showdown with the South African Police in a dramatic scene at the Sheraton Hotel in Pretoria, South Africa.
The drama was caused by Bushiri’s bodyguards who refused access to the “Man of God” when police officers had tried to obtain a statement from Bushiri regarding assault charges filed against him by Martin Antonio. Antonio claims to have been the victim of intimidation, death threats and physical assault between March and July from Bushiri and his henchmen who he claims have been trying to force him to drop a case he had opened against Major 1 (as Bushiri is popularly known) at the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities.
Antonio has famously accused Bushiri of destroying his marriage with his fake prophecies. Last year he released a video which went viarl on social media networks where he vowed to expose Bushiri’s “con-artistry”. “I ahve opened cases against Bushiri but nothing has been done. He threatened to kill me and instructed his bodyguards to beat the hell out of me but I managed to survive,” said Antonio.
Bushiri’s bodyguards who outnumbered the police officers had their way and police officers backed down fearing the repercussions if they proceeded with their duties. An officer who refused to be named claimed that Bushiri’s powerful and political connections made it hard for them to enforce the law when it came to dealing with Bushiri.
