RWANDAN RAPPER Francis Uwimana, commonly known as Fireman, appealed to the military court against his sentence of three-year jail-term in prison. He appealed, after being convicted of battering and injuring one of the students of Iwawa rehabilitation center. The Rwandan rapper appeared before the court this Monday, June 7 together with a group of 11 people all charged for the same offence of battering and injuring their fellows when they were still at Iwawa rehabilitation center. Among the group of 11, only three were acquitted, the rest (Fireman included) were convicted with a three-year jail term and a fine of Rwf500, 000. For the current ruling, the prosecution appealed against the verdict of some who were acquitted and others who were given a lower sentence without the mitigating circumstances, while the accused also appealed against the ruling of a three-year jail term pleading innocence. Fireman is being charged along with three rehabilitation officers, five military officers and three rehabilitation student leaders. The prosecution accuses Fireman, who was in charge of security of the students, for injuring the arm of a student called Vedaste Nkurikiyumukiza(who was present at the court). However, witnesses who came with Nkurikiyumukiza said that he was beaten and fell down which led to his arm being broken but not merely as a result of fireman’s actions. The prosecution, based on those evidences, asked for an increased jail term (15-years jail term) and a fine of Rwf5 million for Fireman, because he did not even plead guilty. The prosecution also requested all the accused to be arrested, including those who had been acquitted, because they did not present mitigating circumstances. With his lawyer Irene Bayisabe, Firemana pleaded innocent indicating that the witnesses contradicted themselves, asking the judge to base on that and prove him innocent. He also added that he spent nine months without being arrested, hence making the case invalid: “If have injured him in January 2019 and I was arrested in October 2019, after I had left Iwawa Rehabilitation Center, what sovereignty did I have to spend all that time without being charged with those offences?” he asks. He also added that he was just punishing the student, which was part of his responsibilities and that other school leaders were present, and so that should not be considered an offence, but an accident. After barely eight hours of listening to both sides, the judge concluded that the final verdict will be delivered on July 2.
