Frantic Search for Rat Delays Court Proceedings of Prominent Paster on Trial for Sexual Abuse in Pretoria

• An unexpected furry guest delayed the sexual abuse trial of disgraced Bishop Stephen Zondo
• The proceeding had to be moved to another courtroom in the Pretoria High Court after officials could not find the rat
• Zondo is facing 10 counts for the alleged sexual abuse of seven women, mainly from his church

PRETORIA - The rape trial of Bishop Stephen Zondo was off to a rocky start in the Pretoria High Court on Thursday, 18 May.

The court proceedings were delayed by a frantic search for a rat scurrying around the courtroom, evading court officials.

The search was in vain, and the rat was never found, which resulted in proceedings being moved to a different courtroom.

Husband of one of the women Zondo allegedly abused resumes testimony

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After the excitement died down, the witness, a former church member, took the stand to continue his testimony, TimesLIVE reported.

Bishop Zondo is accused of sexually abusing seven women, most of whom were part of his church, the Rivers of Living Waters Ministries.

The witness alleges that his wife was one of the women who the disgraced former pastor sexually assaulted.

Witness tells court wife left church amid theft allegations

The witness' wife used to work as a cook in Zondo's home and the church. The man was asked if his wife left the congregation after her sexual assault.

He said she resigned after allegations of theft. The court heard how the woman's handbag was searched when it was left unattended in the church office, and a sticker of rival preacher Shepherd Bushiri was found, SowetanLIVE reported.

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The witness said she no longer trusted the people in the office and resigned with immediate effect.

‘Housekeepers’ actor Mangaliso Ngema announces sexual assault charges by his sister have been withdrawn by NPA

In another story, Breifly News reported that seasoned actor Mangaliso Ngema has announced that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) dropped the sexual assault charge against him.

Mangaliso's name was thrown into the spotlight for the wrong reasons after his sister alleged he forced himself on her. However, according to Mangaliso's recent post, the evidence was insufficient to prove that he did commit the crime, and the NPA dropped the charges.

TshisaLIVE reports that the NPA's South Gauteng spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwane confirmed that the evidence that emerged failed to convince the prosecution.

Source: Briefly News