Sandlana distances himself from arrest-day violence as he fights for bail in corruption case

Controversial International Pentecostal Holiness Church (IPHC) leader Mike Sandlana has denied any role in violent clashes between police and his supporters during his arrest, insisting in the Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Wednesday that he poses no threat to the justice process and should be released on bail.

Sandlana, 64, head of the church’s Jerusalema faction in Brits, North West, is charged with corruption for allegedly offering bribes to Pretoria High Court judge Portia Phahlane in exchange for a favourable ruling in an IPHC succession dispute. Phahlane, her son Kagiso, and church spokesperson Vusi Ndala were arrested alongside him in November.

The state alleges that during Sandlana’s arrest operation, two police officers were assaulted by church security guards and supporters, with one officer disarmed before the firearm was recovered. Sandlana rejected any suggestion that the confrontation should count against him in his bail application. “I firmly believe and contend that the scuffle between the church guards and members of the SAPS had nothing to do with me as I was not even present at the gate where the scuffle had allegedly taken place,” he said in his affidavit. He argued that even if the guards acted unlawfully, “the alleged conduct cannot be attributed to me and used as a factor in denying bail.”

Sandlana also confirmed previous convictions relating to possession of an unlicensed firearm, contravention of the Identification Act, and extortion for which he received a suspended sentence in 2002. He told the court that the record was expunged in 2019. He is currently out on R5 000 bail in an unrelated fraud matter before the Pretoria Regional Court, which is expected to resume in January 2026. His defence plans to apply for discharge in terms of section 174 of the Criminal Procedure Act.

The religious leader revealed that although he heads a wealthy church, he personally relies on church support and loans from others to meet his family obligations. He has nine children, three of whom are minors, and supports five wives one married civilly and four under church custom. He pays maintenance varying from R2 000 to R10 000 per month, including a court-ordered R10 000 for his estranged wife, Magalane, with whom divorce proceedings have been ongoing since 2020.

As part of his bail plea, Sandlana highlighted his philanthropic work through the Michael Sandlana Foundation, which he says funds 22 students in Russia and provides housing and educational support to disadvantaged families across South Africa and SADC countries.