Rwandan official: Genocide suspect arrested in Netherlands

KIGALI, Rwanda – A Rwandan man accused of participating in the country’s 1994 genocide has been arrested by authorities in the Netherlands, an official in the capital, Kigali, said Tuesday.

Rwanda prosecution spokesman Justin Nkusi said his government had requested to have Joseph Mugenzi, a former banker, extradited back home to face trial over crimes related to the genocide.

“His arrest on Tuesday follows an arrest warrant issued by Rwanda against the suspect,” Nkusi said.

The 71-year-old suspect is accused of playing a key role in the genocide in which over 800,000 ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus were killed by Hutu extremists, authorities in Rwanda say.

Mugenzi is accused of drawing up a list of Tutsis to be killed. He sought asylum in 2000 in the Netherlands.

In 2016, the Netherlands extradited two people to be tried for their role in the genocide.

The arrest of Mugenzi comes five months after another key genocide suspect, Felicien Kabuga, accused of financing the genocide, was arrested in Paris. Kabuga, who has called the accusations “lies,” has been transferred to The Hague pending trial.