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A whistleblower in the case of charismatic Nigerian pastor Timothy Omotoso was threatened and shot at on Tuesday - the evening after the pastor's case was referred to the Eastern Cape High Court in Port Elizabeth.
READ: Pastor Omotoso case transferred to High Court
Sources close to the investigation said the whistleblower, who attended court proceedings on Tuesday, was in her yard in KwaZakhele at 19:45, when a man wearing a balaclava approached her.
The man allegedly told her to drop the case against "Daddy", apparently a reference to the charismatic Nigerian televangelist and senior pastor of the Jesus Dominion International Church.
The whistleblower then allegedly saw the man drawing a firearm and turned and ran to the side entrance of her home as two shots were fired.
Police spokesperson Andre Beetge confirmed that a woman who was involved in a prominent case had been threatened and that shots were fired.
Beetge said no one was injured and the man who fired the shots had fled on foot. He said police were investigating a case of attempted murder.
Omotoso, 59, and his co-accused Zukiswa Sitho, 28, and Lusanda Solani, 36, face 63 charges including human trafficking, racketeering, the contravention of the Sexual Offences Act and rape.
The women are accused of identifying vulnerable girls, some as young as 12, and using luxuries to lure them to stay at the church. The girls were then allegedly groomed to provide sexual acts on Omotoso.
ALSO READ: 'We were forced to please him' – Idols SA twins on Pastor Tim Omotoso
On Tuesday, Magistrate Thandeka Mashiyi withdrew the charges against Nobubele Mlindi, 31, who was arrested in March and the case was transferred to the High Court for pre-trial proceedings.
She also noted the provisional withdrawal of a second case against Omotoso, which related to his immigration status and an alleged fraudulent work visa from 2000.
