Uwinkindi to appear in court this week

Prosecution will today receive a file detailing the interrogation process of Jean Bosco Uwinkindi, who was transferred to Rwanda from ICTR last Thursday, before he is produced in court this week.Uwinkindi, a former pastor of the Pentecostal Church in Kanzenze, Bugesera in the former Kigali-Rural prefecture, is accused of unleashing killers on thousands of Tutsi refugees, including members of his church, during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.“As the law stipulates, his file will be transferred from Police to Prosecution after three days from the time he was brought to Rwanda. We expect to receive the file tomorrow, (today), and that is when we will release more details regarding his file,” said the Spokesman of the Prosecution, Alain Mukurarinda said, Sunday.According to the law, the first day (which was Thursday when Uwinkindi arrived) is not counted meaning the three day countdown started on Friday and elapsed yesterday (Sunday).“If the last day falls on a weekend or a holiday, the file is transferred on the next working day,” explained Mukurarinda.Police was not in position to announce whether it had or had not interrogated Uwinkindi and whether they are ready to transfer his file to the Prosecution.According to Mukurarinda, the Prosecution will have to produce Uwinkindi before court in less than seven days.Uwinkindi is currently detained at the special transit facility at Kigali Central Prison, designated for suspects transferred from the ICTR or other international jurisdictions.He will be tried under a special law concerning the transfer of Genocide suspects to Rwanda by ICTR or from other states and his case will be heard on first instance by a specialised chamber at the High CourtThe decision to transfer Uwinkindi to Rwanda was first made in June 2011 by the tribunal’s Referral Chamber, and later upheld by the Appeals Chamber, after giving a clean bill of health to Rwandan judiciary.Uwinkindi is charged with three counts of genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide and extermination as a crime against humanity.His indictment alleges that he led a group of killers to look for and exterminate Tutsi civilians, and on numerous occasions planned, instigated, ordered and committed acts of genocide against Tutsi.

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Uwinkindi to appear in court this week