The High Court on Wednesday set free a woman who has been on remand for suspected human trafficking, saying there was no sufficient evidence to warrant her continued detention. The suspect, identified as Annah Nyiramana has for nearly two months been in detention at Nyarugenge Central Prison (1930) on suspicion that she attempted to traffic five girls-four Rwandans and a Burundian- to the Middle East, in Oman. The woman was early January intercepted after girls were caught at the Rwanda-Tanzania border and after being questioned, said they were going to meet a contact in the Tanzanian town of Kahama. The girls had said they did not know the contact but pointed at Nyiramana, a businesswoman based in Kigali, who was later apprehended. However, Judge Alice Rulisa of the High Court said that there were strong reasons to believe that the woman was taking the girls for employment in Oman and prosecution has not provided evidence that they were being trafficked for sexual exploitation or any other ill motive. The judge said that the suspect had also produced contracts for the girls from their prospective employers some of them Nyiramana’s children who are married and living in the Arab country. The three witnesses said that while in Oman, they were paid their full salary as agreed and were living a comfortable life and were allowed to return to Rwanda when they felt it was time for them to come home. After the ruling, prosecution said despite the bail granted to the suspect, they would continue investigations on which they will decide whether to pursue the case into substance. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
