Rwanda Receives Genocide Suspect Deported from US

GOOBJOOG NEWS | KIGALI: Rwanda has received Jean Léonard Teganya, a man accused of participating in the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi, following his deportation from the United States, where he served a prison sentence for lying about his alleged role in the killings.

The National Public Prosecution Authority (NPPA) confirmed that Teganya arrived in Rwanda on Monday, and was handed over to prosecutors. Rwandan authorities have pursued a case against him since 2014 over alleged genocide and crimes against humanity committed in the former Butare prefecture.

Teganya was a medical student at the National University of Rwanda and undertaking practical training at Butare University Hospital during the genocide. US prosecutors said he was affiliated with the MRND political party and the Interahamwe militia, which played a central role in the killings.

Evidence presented during his US trial linked him to the targeting of Tutsi patients and refugees who had sought shelter at the hospital. Prosecutors alleged that he helped lead groups of soldiers and Interahamwe members who searched for people hiding there, some of whom were subsequently killed. He was also accused of involvement in the rape of women sheltering at the facility.

Teganya was convicted by a US federal jury in April 2019 on two counts of immigration fraud and three counts of perjury after concealing information about his alleged activities during the genocide while seeking asylum. He was sentenced to 97 months in prison in July 2019.

The US conviction did not amount to a finding of guilt for genocide. The allegations relating to his conduct in Rwanda remain a separate matter for the Rwandan justice system.

After leaving Rwanda in July 1994, Teganya travelled through the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya and India before reaching Canada in 1999, where he applied for asylum. Canadian authorities rejected his claim following proceedings that examined allegations of his involvement in atrocities at Butare hospital.

He later crossed into the United States in 2014, where he was arrested and applied for asylum. His failure to disclose his alleged links to the MRND and activities during the genocide formed the basis of the US criminal case.

Rwanda’s prosecution authority welcomed cooperation from US judicial institutions, saying international collaboration was important in ensuring that people suspected of involvement in the genocide are brought before justice.

The 1994 genocide against the Tutsi lasted about 100 days, from April to July, and left an estimated 800,000 people dead, most of them Tutsi. Rwanda has continued to pursue suspects who fled the country, working with foreign governments and international institutions to secure their return for prosecution.

Teganya’s arrival in Rwanda now allows prosecutors to pursue the allegations against him through the country’s judicial process.