Miss Universe runner‑up Chidimma Adetshina arrested in South Africa over illegal entry

Chidimma Adetshina, the first runner‑up of Miss Universe 2024 representing Nigeria, was detained in Cape Town, South Africa, together with her toddler son. South African Department of Home Affairs and police say she entered the country illegally by crossing the Lebombo border post from Mozambique and falsified her nationality documents. She has been released on strict bail, placed under house arrest and faces a deportation order pending a court hearing in July.

Her mother, Anabela Rungo, was also arrested for illegal residence after authorities discovered she had used a forged Mozambican passport to obtain South African identity papers for her daughter. A Home Affairs statement said the act was “a blatant disregard of legal consequences.” The case has drawn attention in beauty‑pageant circles, where Adetshina previously withdrew from the Miss South Africa competition and later won Miss Universe Nigeria 2024 before earning the Miss Universe runner‑up title in Mexico.

South African officials have cancelled the mother‑and‑daughter’s South African IDs and passports, citing the inability to prove legal status. The incident highlights immigration enforcement and the scrutiny of pageant contestants’ nationality claims.