Credit: Presidential Press and Information Office
The husband of a South African deputy mayor has been arrested in Bloemfontein after law enforcement officials uncovered nearly 30 suspected undocumented immigrants hidden inside his guesthouse.
Phil Odili, a Nigerian national married to the deputy executive mayor of the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality, Lulama Titi-Odili, was taken into police custody following a coordinated raid on the hospitality premises.
Local authorities confirmed that the operation has sparked a massive inter-agency investigation involving both federal police and immigration enforcement.
Free State Premier MaQueen Letsoha-Mathae disclosed that law enforcement officers discovered between 28 and 29 foreign nationals who had allegedly been confined to the guesthouse for at least a week.
Investigators revealed that the individuals never left the property during their stay, while an unidentified accomplice regularly delivered food and other supplies to the house to conceal their presence.
Preliminary background checks indicate that the majority of the detained individuals are undocumented migrants originating from Nigeria and Ethiopia.
The investigation took a more serious turn when security operatives recovered a bizarre assortment of official documents during a search of the facility.
Detectives allegedly found a valid Nigerian passport stored alongside the death certificate and national identity card of a deceased South African woman.
Investigators are currently trying to determine how an active visa linked to the dead woman was successfully processed and issued long after her passing.
This high-profile raid comes at a time of severe tension and heightened immigration crackdowns across South Africa, following public protests against illegal immigration.
While Odili remains in state custody, prosecutors are still finalising formal charges as detectives sweep the property for further evidence.
Officials from the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality have not yet released an official statement regarding the arrest of the deputy mayor’s spouse.
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