Man who ‘walked from Cape Town for pilgrimage' accused of ‘theft and fraud’

An article about a South African man who claimed to have walked from Cape Town to Jerusalem has been taken down by MEMO after it was revealed that he is a fraud.

Moreover, Shaheed Stakala is wanted in South Africa to face charges of stealing money which Muslims had been saving to perform the Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages.

MEMO and other media outlets were alerted to this when the story of his alleged walk from Cape Town, which ended with him meeting Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammed Shtayyeh and visiting Al-Aqsa Mosque, was publicised. Details of the charges against him were given on the “Faizal Sayed Show”in South Africa.

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In a video circulating on social media, Stakala claims that he walked across Africa and went into the Gaza Strip, but the Israelis refused him permission to enter the occupation state. He then claims that he went back into Egypt, through Sinai and across the Gulf of Aqaba into Jordan, from where he entered the occupied West Bank and headed for Jerusalem.

His intention, ironically given the charges against him, is to go back to Jordan when the border reopens post-pandemic and head for Madinah and Makkah to perform the pilgrimage.

The authorities in Pretoria are being requested to ask their counterparts in Israel, Palestine and Jordan to deport Stakala to South Africa so that he can face justice.