A 75-year-old Rwandan man arrested in the Netherlands in 2019 and extradited to Rwanda two years later has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for complicity in massacres during the 1994 Tutsi genocide, official media reported on Thursday, September 5.
According to the prosecution, citing witnesses, Venant Rutunga allegedly led police officers to the ISAR, the agricultural research institute of which he was regional director, to kill Tutsi employees and those seeking refuge there. He was convicted by the Rwandan courts “20 years in prison for his participation in the 1994 genocide against the Tutsis” and he recognized it “Guilty of complicity in genocide”reports the New times.
The genocide against the Tutsi minority in Rwanda, orchestrated by the extremist Hutu regime in power, left more than 800,000 dead between April and July 1994.
There is insufficient evidence to establish direct involvement in the murders.
The defendants initially faced three charges: genocide, complicity in genocide and complicity in extermination as a crime against humanity. But the three-judge panel ruled there was insufficient evidence to prove Venant Rutunga personally participated in the killings or provided weapons.
Prosecutors had asked for life imprisonment. Mr Rutunga, who pleaded not guilty, said he had called the officers to ensure security at ISAR, a decision he said had been approved by the facility’s board of directors. He showed no signs of emotion in court as the sentence was read out.
His lawyer, M.my Sophonie Sebaziga told local media that she would visit her client in prison to “discuss next steps” on a possible appeal.
