TWO men arrested in connection with the killing of a Rwanda newspaper editor last month may appear in court this week after prosecution said investigations are complete.
Jean Leonard Rugambage, deputy editor of a suspended weekly publication Umuvugizi, was gunned down on June 24 outside his home in what Police has described as revenge killing.
Prosecution spokesman, Augustin Nkusi told reporters in Kigali on Thursday that one of the suspects, identified as Didas Nduguyangu, had admitted to the murder, saying he had been contracted to kill.
It has emerged that Nduguyangu was hired by Antoine Karemera to carry out the crime at a cost of Frw 500,000 (about US$ 850). Karemera told Police he ordered the journalist’s killing avenge th killing of his own brother, a banker killed by Rugambage during the 1994 genocide.
“Nduguyangu told took our investigators to the Mount Kigali forest and showed them where he had buried the gun,” Nkusi said
Rugambage had previously served 3 years in prison after being sentenced by a gacaca court for the murder but released in 2007. Karemera told prosecutors he was angered when Rugambage was acquitted.
Police and prosecutors said they worked hard to hunt down the killers, ever since the murder was reported. The two suspects face a life sentence on conviction.
Nkusi said the development puts to rest speculation by human activists and critics of Rwanda who have accused the government of being behind the murder. The government has since denied the charges.
“It (the story) is different from what the media has published. Today, we want to put the record straight,” said Nkusi.