The High Court in Kigali on Tuesday heard a bail plea by a man who is accused of trafficking out of the country three girls to Uganda for sexual exploitation. Claver Twagirumukiza was arrested last year on allegations of luring girls out of the country under the pretext of finding them lucrative employment in Uganda, only to engage them in sexual slavery at the Uganda-Kenya border town of Busia. Subsequently, the Nyarugenge Intermediate Court, on December 23, remanded him for 30 days to allow prosecution complete investigations. However, the accused, through his lawyer, Herman Twajamahoro, contests his detention, saying there was no sufficient evidence implicating him. He has, thus, asked the high court to release him on bail pending the trial in substance. Twagirumukiza, a long-distance truck driver who plies the Northern Corridor route, claims to own a bar in Busia town where he pupports to have taken the girls (names withheld) to work. Appearing before the court, Twagirumukiza denied the allegations of human trafficking, saying he was too busy a driver to find time to engage in trafficking girls for sexual exploitation. “The reasons based on by the Nyarugenge Intermediate Court were flimsy and should be given no value because there is no evidence showing that Twagirumukiza trafficked those girls or that they were denied certain rights while they were under his care,” said Twajamahoro. However, Eric Munyaneza, the prosecutor, said the victims were indeed trafficked from Rwanda to Uganda purposely to involve them in sexual-related activities and that the accused was central in the transaction. “What Twagirumukiza is saying that he took them for employment and the fact that they were free is not true. For example, we have testimonies showing how he brought ‘clients’ to the girls who paid him directly then he would choose to give the girls food or not to depending on how well they treated these so-called ‘clients’,” said Munyaneza. The prosecutor said they were still putting together the case and that given the seriousness of human trafficking, it is better to keep the accused in detention to ensure he does not tamper with evidence or flee the country. The court will pronounce itself on whether or not to grant the suspect bail on January 25. Under the Penal Code, conviction on the crime of human trafficking attracts a prison sentence of between seven and 10 years and a fine of between Rwf5 and 10 million or both. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
