Johannesburg
CNN
—
The most wanted fugitive from the 1994 Rwandan genocide has been captured in Pal, South Africa after decades on the run.
Fulgence Kayishema is accused of killing more than 2,000 Tutsi refugees – women, men, children and the elderly – at the Nyange Catholic Church during the genocide. He has been on the run since 2001.
He was arrested Wednesday in a joint operation by South African authorities and United Nations investigators.
Kayshema initially denied his identity when arrested, according to a statement from the UN team. But when evening came, he said to them: “I have been waiting a long time to be arrested.”
Investigators said he used multiple identities and forged documents to avoid detection.
“The arrest was the culmination of an intense, thorough and rigorous investigation,” a senior prosecutor involved in the case told CNN.
“We conducted a thorough investigation of his family and known associates. This ultimately allows us to identify the right places to search and find the critical information we need.”
“Fulgence Kayishema has been a fugitive for over 20 years. His arrest allows him to finally be brought to justice for the crimes he committed,” said Serge Bramerz, prosecutor at the United Nations International Remains in Criminal Tribunals (IRMCT).
“Genocide is the most serious crime known to mankind. The international community promised to prosecute and punish the perpetrators. This arrest is tangible proof that this commitment is not lost and that justice will be served no matter how long it takes,” Brammertz said.
When the genocide ended in July 1994, Kayshema fled to the Democratic Republic of Congo with his wife, children, and brother-in-law. He moved to other African countries and then to South Africa in 1999, where he applied for asylum in Cape Town using his assumed name.
According to prosecutors, he was able to rely on a close network of support, including former Rwandan soldiers, who went to extreme lengths to conceal his activities and whereabouts after arriving in South Africa.
In recent years, IRMCT prosecutors have complained of a lack of cooperation from South African authorities, and there have been a series of incidents that nearly led to Kayishema's arrest. The report states there was a failure to arrest Kayishema three years ago.
But on Thursday Brammertz praised the South African government's cooperation and support.
The events in Nyanga, Rwanda, were one of the most brutal genocides, with approximately 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus killed over 90 days.
The tribunal alleges that Kayishema was directly involved in the “planning and execution of this massacre.” According to the indictment, he bought and distributed gasoline to burn down the church while the refugees were inside. Kayishema and others are also accused of using bulldozers to level the church after the fire, with refugees still inside the church.
The church's former priest, Athanase Seromba, was convicted of genocide in 2006 and sentenced to 15 years in prison, which was later sentenced to life in prison on appeal.
Kaishema is scheduled to be arraigned in a Cape Town court on Friday.
The U.S. War Crimes Rewards Program offered a reward of up to $5,000,000 for information about Kayishema and other fugitives responsible for the Rwandan genocide.
Along with Kayshema's arrest, the United Nations is still looking for three more possible suspects.
In 2020, another fugitive was arrested in a Paris suburb after more than 20 years on the run.
Félicien Kabuga, 'one of the world's most wanted fugitives' believed to be the mastermind behind the genocide, has been arrested in a joint operation with French authorities.
In the Rwandan genocide, both Hutu militias and civilians murdered numerous members of the Tutsi minority, including men, women, and children, many of whom had been neighbors before the conflict began.
The massacre finally ended 100 days later when Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF) troops led by Paul Kagame defeated Hutu rebels and took control of the country.