French prosecutors have requested a 15-year prison sentence for Claude Muhayimana, who is being tried for his role in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.
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The request was made on Thursday, February 26 as the court of appeal in Paris held the last appeal hearing of the trial that began on February 3. The court is expected to deliver its verdict on Friday.
Muhayimana was convicted in 2021 by the Cour d’Assises de Paris for complicity in genocide and complicity in crimes against humanity for acts committed in Bisesero between April and June 1994. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison.
Muhayimana appealed the verdict, seeking acquittal. The prosecution and civil parties also filed appeals. He was released a year after his conviction and placed under judicial supervision pending the appeal trial.
Born in 1961 in Gitesi, then part of the former Kibuye Prefecture (now Karongi District), Muhayimana worked as a driver during the genocide. He moved to France in 2001, obtained French citizenship in 2010, and later worked as a municipal employee in the city of Rouen.
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During the appeal hearings before the French court, witnesses linked Muhayimana to acts committed during the genocide. Among them was his ex-wife, who testified that Muhayimana transported Interahamwe militia members in a red Toyota Hilux vehicle marked Guest House, carrying up armed people who chanted threats against Tutsi residents. She said she saw him multiple times in April, May and June 1994 in Kibuye.
She also recounted that he transported the body of a gendarme killed in Karongi for burial.
Disputing Munyemana's claims of being incapacitated during the attacks, the woman argued that his movements, driving armed militia, transporting bodies and coordinating with local authorities, demonstrated active participation in the killings.
Other witnesses, including a former colleague, told the appeals court they saw vehicles, including a blue Daihatsu and a red pickup, being used during the Genocide.
According to the testimony, Muhayimana drove militia members to areas where Tutsi were being hunted, including the hills around Karongi and Bisesero, before returning to Kibuye town.
Defence arguments
The defence team has requested that Muhayimana be acquitted, arguing that the evidence is insufficient and that the incriminating testimonies are unreliable.
In court, his lawyers described some of the statements as fabricated and lacking concrete proof. They questioned inconsistencies in the locations and dates provided by certain witnesses and highlighted that one witness had withdrawn his testimony after initially implicating Muhayimana.
Defence witnesses also portrayed Muhayimana as a driver who maintained good relations with Tutsi neighbours and, at times, attempted to help people to escape. They also claimed he was threatened by extremists and forced to pay money to avoid being killed, presenting him as someone navigating a dangerous environment rather than directing the violence.
Background
Muhayimana was arrested on April 9, 2014 by French police following a complaint filed by the Committee for the Protection of Civil Rights. He was released on April 10, 2015, and placed under house arrest pending investigation.
His first trial began on November 22, 2021, and concluded on December 16, 2021, resulting in his conviction and 14-year sentence. The appeals court is expected to deliver its verdict on Friday evening.