Televangelist Timothy Omotoso leaves South Africa
Controversial Nigerian televangelist, Timothy Omotoso, is set to board a flight to his home country following the recent end to a turbulent legal saga that spanned nearly seven years.
Nigerian televangelist, Timothy Omotoso, at the OR Tambo International Airport on 18 May 2025. Picture: Mongezi Koko/EWN
JOHANNESBURG - Controversial Nigerian televangelist, Timothy Omotoso, is set to board a flight to his home country following the recent end to a turbulent legal saga that spanned nearly seven years.
Omotoso was first arrested in 2017, facing charges of rape and human trafficking involving several young women from his church.
But earlier in May, the Eastern Cape High Court acquitted him on a technicality, slamming the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) for failing to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Just days after that verdict, Omotoso was again in handcuffs, this time on separate immigration-related offences.
The East London Magistrates Court later released him, ruling that he could not be held for longer than 48 hours without formal charges.
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Omotoso began preparations for his journey home this week, departing from the Eastern Cape. He was then spotted in transit at the King Shaka International Airport in Durban on Sunday, and was getting ready to board a South African Airways flight from Johannesburg to Nigeria.
His release last week came after the Department of Home Affairs failed to comply with section 34 of the Immigration Act, which requires that a detainee be formally charged within 48 hours or released.
With his immigration status declared undesirable, Omotoso is technically a free man and his exit from the country falls within the bounds of the law.
It's still unclear whether home affairs plans to take any further action against him.