A Rwandan man accused of participating in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi has been arrested in the United States. Authorities allege he lied on immigration and naturalization documents in an attempt to conceal his past. Vincent Nzigiyimfura, 65, was arrested in Dayton, Ohio, on Wednesday, June 12, and appeared before the US District Court for the Southern District of Ohio the following day.
According to a statement released by the US Department of Justice on Friday, he faces one count of visa fraud and two counts of attempted naturalization fraud. The charges stem from Nzigiyimfura allegedly concealing his involvement in the 1994 Genocide when applying for immigration benefits, including permanent residency and naturalization, over a period spanning more than a decade. “The United States is not a safe haven for human rights violators. Those who commit immigration fraud to hide their violent pasts, like the defendant, will be charged and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
The Rwandan Genocide
The Rwandan genocide, a 100-day period of extreme violence beginning in April 1994, resulted in the massacre of at least 800,000 people, primarily minority Tutsis and moderate Hutus. The UN later classified the massacres as a Genocide against the Tutsi. The US Department of Justice stated that the indictment paints a disturbing picture of Nzigiyimfura’s alleged crimes in Rwanda. At the time of the genocide, he was a businessman and butcher in the southern province and reportedly held influence in the Gihisi and Nyanza areas.
The indictment alleges that Nzigiyimfura provided fellow perpetrators with weapons, transportation, and logistical support. He is also accused of establishing roadblocks where Tutsi victims were detained and killed and using his vehicle to transport materials for constructing the barricades. Prosecutors further claim that Nzigiyimfura devised a scheme to lure hiding Tutsi survivors by falsely assuring them that the violence had ended, only for them to be captured and killed.
The US government has emphasized that such atrocities will not go unpunished, regardless of the time elapsed or the distance the perpetrators have fled. “His indictment and arrest bring us closer to justice for the victims,” said Jared Murphey, Acting Special Agent in Charge of ICE Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Detroit. “No community should harbour a war criminal. These accusations reveal the brutal suffering Nzigiyimfura inflicted on the Tutsi people.” Following the genocide, Nzigiyimfura fled Rwanda and lived in Malawi before beginning the process of becoming a US resident.
Related Stories
DRC Accuses Rwanda of Rights Abuses at African Court
Rwanda Seeking $63Million from UK Over Cancelled Asylum Deal
Congo And Rwanda Leaders Call For Ceasefire In Eastern Congo
Details Emerge of Alleged Decade-Long Deception by Suspect in US
Between 2008 and 2009, Vincent Nzigiyimfura allegedly submitted fraudulent applications for an immigrant visa and alien registration, falsely claiming that he had neither participated in the genocide nor persecuted anyone. In 2009, Nzigiyimfura entered the United States based on these false claims. Five years later, in 2014, he applied for US citizenship, again allegedly lying to authorities by denying that he had ever committed a crime or misled US officials. During a naturalization interview that November, he reaffirmed these falsehoods under oath. Although his citizenship application was never granted, he continued to live in the US undetected. In 2018, he applied for and received a replacement green card set to expire in 2029.
Three years later, in July 2021, he used that card as identification when applying for an Ohio driving license, which prosecutors say was another move in his long-running scheme to maintain a false identity. The indictment forms part of the US government’s ongoing efforts to hold accountable individuals who have committed war crimes abroad and later sought refuge in the United States through deception. “This horrible conduct will not be tolerated,” said Kelly A. Norris, Acting US Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio. “The indictment alleges that the defendant facilitated the killing of Tutsis during the genocide and then lied about it on immigration applications.”
Source: The EastAfrican
