UK Brings First Charges Linked to 1994 Rwanda Genocide

UK prosecutors have charged a 65-year-old doctor over his alleged role in the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, marking what officials describe as the first time related charges have been brought in the United Kingdom.

Vincent Brown, formerly known as Vincent Bajinya, was arrested and charged following a seven-year investigation. He faces one count of conduct ancillary to genocide and six offences of aiding crimes against humanity in Rwanda.

Brown was due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday. The available information does not state whether he entered a plea or whether a trial date was set.

Prosecutors outline allegations

Frank Ferguson, head of the Crown Prosecution Service’s counterterror division, said the charges concern allegations that Brown took part in the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda in 1994.

“He is alleged to have directed and incited acts of murder and genocide carried out by others,” Ferguson said in a statement.

The Crown Prosecution Service said the case was the first in the UK involving charges related to the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda. The allegations have not been established as proven facts.

Commander Helen Flanagan, head of counterterror policing, said the case showed that the UK was not a safe haven for people suspected of international crimes.

Investigation followed earlier legal action

Brown was first arrested in 2006. A UK court refused his extradition to Rwanda in 2017, alongside the extradition of four other men.

Metropolitan police war crimes investigators began examining the case in 2019 at the request of the Rwandan government. Police said they were continuing to investigate several other Rwandan genocide suspects living in Britain.

Brown is originally from Kigali and lives in London. He previously worked for a charity that assisted refugee nurses and midwives seeking employment in Britain.

According to information attributed to former Rwandan Justice Minister Tharcisse Karugarama, Brown is believed to have entered the UK as an asylum seeker in 1998. His attorney, Philip Eldin-Taylor, said Brown was granted UK citizenship and changed his name in 2004.

Rwanda genocide background

The genocide in Rwanda left an estimated 800,000 people dead, most of them Tutsis, during 100 days of slaughter in 1994. Several other countries have prosecuted suspects linked to the killings.

The UK proceedings add to efforts to investigate alleged participation in the genocide years after the events. Any allegations against Brown will be considered through the court process.