The High Court in Kigali, on October 20, heard an appeal filed by former Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Disaster Management, Antoine Ruvebana, who is challenging a 10-year sentence handed to him by the Gasabo Intermediate Court over defilement.

The hearing was conducted in a closed court session. Both Ruvebana and the prosecutors appealed the previous ruling, with each side contesting aspects of the intermediate court’s decision.

In March 2023, the Gasabo Intermediate Court sentenced Ruvebana to 10 years in prison after finding him guilty of defiling a victim identified by a protected code name VAF. The verdict was based on testimonies from the victim and two other witnesses, identified as BCF and BEF, along with a psychological report that supported the prosecution’s case.

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During the lower court trial which was also held behind closed doors, Ruvebana pleaded not guilty, claiming he had been framed by his wife amid a divorce dispute.

According to the prosecution, the defilement occurred between 2005 and 2013, beginning when the victim was six years old and continuing until she was 14. At the time, Ruvebana was serving as a diplomat in Switzerland.

In the previous trial, prosecutors had initially requested a 25-year jail term, but the court imposed a 10-year sentence, citing that it was his first prosecution.

Ruvebana served as Permanent Secretary at the then Ministry of Disaster Management and Refugee Affairs (MIDIMAR), now the Ministry of Emergency Management (MINEMA), from 2012 to 2017.

The High Court is expected to deliver its verdict on the appeal on November 21.