The death of a former high-ranking Rwandan official Protais Mpiranya who had been hunted for years for his role in the 1994 genocide has been confirmed.
The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, ICTR, indicted Mpiranya, the head of the presidential guard, more than two decades ago.
He changed his name while on the run, and detectives have finally found his tomb on the outskirts of Harare, Zimbabwe‘s city. Mpiranya died in 2006.
The tribunal’s final major fugitive, Prime Minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana, was accused of orchestrating the murders of prominent moderate Rwandan politicians at the commencement of the genocide.
He’s also accused of killing ten Belgian UN peacekeepers.
The ICTR indictment alleges that between 1990 and 1994, Mpiranya and other officers conspired to exterminate the Tutsi civilians and political opponents, and helped to train interahamwe and militia groups who committed the genocide.
On January 5, 1994, the day that the Broad-Based Transitional Government specified by the Arusha Accords was to be sworn in, Mpiranya prevented the access of political opponents onto the premises of the Conseil national de développement, particularly Lando Ndasingwa and his Liberal Party. This had the result that the only member of the Transitional Government who had been sworn in was President Habyarimana
On September 25, 2002, Mpiranya was indicted by the U.N.’s International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR). He was charged with genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide, complicity in genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. Mpiranya remained at large and was one of the most wanted men by the Tribunal. The US government put a prize on his head in the Rewards for Justice Program.