Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
Former Miss Universe Nigeria, Chidimma Adetshina, returned to the Cape Town Regional Court on Thursday, July 16, 2026, as she continued her high-stakes legal battle against deportation from South Africa, where authorities allege she and her minor son have been residing unlawfully. The court appearance marked the latest chapter in an immigration saga that has captivated public attention since her controversial withdrawal from the Miss South Africa 2024 pageant amid questions over her citizenship. Adetshina, who was born in Soweto to a Nigerian father and a Mozambican mother, was arrested on June 6, 2026, in the Summer Greens area of Cape Town and made her first court appearance on June 9, where she was released on warning pending further proceedings.
At the July 16 hearing, Adetshina’s legal team submitted an affidavit detailing the steps she has taken to regularise her immigration status in South Africa, a move her lawyers hope will persuade the court to halt the deportation proceedings initiated by the Department of Home Affairs. The department, however, maintains that Adetshina and her son have no legal right to remain in the country, alleging that she was declared a prohibited person under South Africa's Immigration Act on December 19, 2024, and that she later re-entered the country unlawfully through the Lebombo border post from Mozambique while claiming to be a South African citizen. According to court papers filed by immigration officer Adrian Jackson, authorities believe Adetshina entered South Africa while prohibited from doing so and has willfully and intentionally remained in the country without lawful residential status.
The proceedings on Thursday were held behind closed doors, with journalists and members of the public denied access to the courtroom, according to reports from South African news platform Central News. Adetshina left the court shortly after her appearance, and the details of the proceedings were not immediately released. No final deportation order or new court date had been announced as of the time of filing this report, leaving the beauty queen and her legal team in a state of uncertainty as they await the court's decision on the affidavit and the next steps in the case.
Adetshina's legal troubles stem from a highly publicised citizenship dispute that erupted during her participation in the Miss South Africa 2024 pageant. She had progressed to the Top 30 of the competition before the backlash intensified, following an investigation by South African authorities into allegations concerning her mother's identity and citizenship documentation. The department's preliminary investigation found possible evidence of fraud and identity theft involving the person registered as Adetshina's mother, though authorities acknowledged that Adetshina "could not have participated in the alleged unlawful actions of her mother" because she was an infant when the incidents occurred in 2001. The controversy also sparked widespread social media attacks directed at Adetshina due to her Nigerian heritage, despite the fact that she was born in South Africa and had met the eligibility requirements for the beauty pageant.
Following her withdrawal from the Miss South Africa competition, Adetshina accepted an invitation to compete in the Miss Universe Nigeria pageant, representing Taraba State and ultimately winning the crown. She went on to represent Nigeria at the 73rd Miss Universe pageant in Mexico City, where she made history by becoming the first Nigerian participant to finish as first runner-up, securing Nigeria's highest-ever placement in the international beauty event. Her remarkable performance earned her the title of Miss Universe Africa and Oceania, and she received widespread praise from Nigerians both at home and in the diaspora, with many describing her accomplishment as a testament to resilience in the face of hardship. The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission commended her for her performance, noting that despite being rejected in South Africa, she seized the opportunity to represent Nigeria and performed admirably on the international stage.
However, the present court action has pulled the focus away from her pageant triumphs and back to her immigration status in South Africa. According to court documents, the Department of Home Affairs' Central Law Enforcement Unit tracked Adetshina's location and found that she and her young son were living in South Africa without valid immigration documentation. Immigration officer Adrian Jackson, who was already acquainted with Adetshina from a previous investigation, verified her personal details through the department's electronic database before interviewing her to determine her immigration status. Jackson subsequently asked the court to authorise Adetshina's continued detention, arguing that it would allow the Department of Home Affairs to fulfil its legal duty of deporting people found to be unlawfully residing in South Africa.
The legal battle follows an earlier decision by Minister of Home Affairs Leon Schreiber, who dismissed Adetshina's application for a review of the department's refusal to grant her and her son a letter of good cause. By rejecting the review application, the minister upheld the department's earlier decision, which had informed Adetshina in September 2024 of its intention to cancel both her South African identity documents and those issued to her son. Schreiber also noted that Adetshina had secured a Nigerian passport while in Nigeria before later applying for a South African visitor's visa, and that she had been declared a prohibited person on December 19, 2024. He further alleged that she later re-entered South Africa from Mozambique through the Lebombo border post while claiming to be a South African citizen.
The deportation case has drawn significant attention from both Nigerian and South African media, with many observers closely watching the legal proceedings as a test of South Africa's immigration enforcement and the rights of individuals born in the country to foreign parents. For Adetshina, the outcome of the case could determine whether she is allowed to remain in the country where she was born and built her early career, or whether she will be forced to leave and potentially relocate permanently to Nigeria, the country she represented on the global stage with such distinction.
As the court considers the affidavit and the Department of Home Affairs' submissions, Adetshina remains in a precarious position, with her freedom and future hanging in the balance. The next steps in the deportation proceedings are expected to be determined in the coming days, as both her legal team and immigration authorities prepare for what could be a prolonged legal battle over her right to remain in South Africa. For now, the former beauty queen finds herself at the centre of a legal storm that has once again thrust her into the spotlight, this time not for her pageant achievements but for a fight that could reshape her life entirely.
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