In a real-life rescue that reads like a thriller, American pastor Josh Sullivan was dramatically freed during a high-stakes shootout in South Africa after being abducted at gunpoint during a prayer meeting. The Tennessee native, serving as a missionary in Motherwell Township, near Gqeberha, had been conducting a church service with his wife and six children present when four masked men stormed the building and kidnapped him on April 10.
Sullivan was taken in his Toyota Fortuner, which was later recovered. The case was handed over to South Africa’s elite crime-fighting unit, the Hawks, after indications that it involved ransom demands. On Tuesday, intelligence-led authorities to a safehouse in Gqeberha. As police approached, suspects in a vehicle attempted to flee and opened fire, prompting a fierce shootout. Three suspects were fatally shot. Inside the vehicle, officers discovered Sullivan alive and unharmed.
Authorities praised the tactical precision of the operation, calling it a success amid a concerning rise in ransom kidnappings targeting foreigners in South Africa. Rev. Jeremy Hall, a fellow pastor, suggested the motive was likely financial.
Sullivan has served at Fellowship Baptist Church in Maryville, Tennessee, since 2012 and relocated with his family to South Africa in 2018 to minister to Xhosa-speaking communities. He had been attending language school in preparation for planting a new church.
His wife, Megan, issued a heartfelt statement thanking the global community for their prayers and support. The family’s ordeal has drawn attention to the growing risks missionaries face in volatile regions, yet their faith—and Sullivan’s safe return—has offered a powerful story of hope.
Though it’s unclear if the family will remain in South Africa, Sullivan’s resilience and the swift actions of local law enforcement have left a lasting impression on both continents.
