Nigerian televangelist Tim Omotoso has been acquitted of all charges by a South African court, marking the end of an eight-year-long legal case that led to his imprisonment on allegations of rape and sexual misconduct.
The Eastern Cape High Court in Gqeberha ruled on Wednesday that prosecutors failed to present sufficient evidence to convict the 66-year-old pastor, News24 reports.
Desespite the acquittal, Omotoso is set to be deported to Nigeria immediately.
As the leader of Jesus Dominion International (JDI) church, Omotoso had been facing 32 charges, including human trafficking and sexual exploitation.
Judge Irma Schoeman, in her ruling, criticized the prosecution’s approach to the case.
Although she found some of Omotoso’s explanations unlikely, she noted that the case did not meet the necessary legal standard for conviction, leading to his release alongside two co-accused.
Omotoso was arrested in 2017 over accusations that he recruited young women from his church and pressured them into sexual acts, claiming it was part of their spiritual journey.
The prosecution alleged that he leveraged his religious status to manipulate vulnerable women, including members of his gospel group, Grace Galaxy, and some schoolgirls at the time of the incidents.
The defence dismissed these accusations as baseless, arguing that no credible evidence supported the claims.
