Rwanda: Who Is Eric Nshimiye, the Genocide Suspect Convicted By U.S. Court?

What the report says

A U.S. federal jury in Connecticut convicted Eric Nshimiye, a 54-year-old Rwandan-American, on Tuesday, October 27, on four perjury counts and one obstruction of justice count. According to the material distributed by AllAfrica from The New Times, the verdict centered on false statements he made about his alleged role in Rwanda’s 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi and his ties to the MRND, the ruling party at the time.

The case arose from Nshimiye’s testimony in the 2019 trial of Jean-Léonard Teganya, a former university classmate who was later convicted of immigration fraud and perjury. Prosecutors said Nshimiye denied involvement in the genocide and denied MRND membership, despite witness accounts presented at trial that described him as a party member who took part in attacks in Butare, now Huye District. The report says witnesses alleged he helped man roadblocks used to identify Tutsis for killing and that he personally killed victims.

The New Times account says Nshimiye studied medicine at the National University of Rwanda in Butare in 1994, later fled through Kenya, and entered the United States as a refugee in 1995. It also says he became a U.S. citizen in 2009 after concealing his past from immigration authorities. The conviction is notable because it reflects ongoing U.S. prosecutions linked to alleged genocide-related deception and the use of immigration and court processes to pursue accountability.

Sentencing is scheduled for January 26 next year. The reported maximum penalties are five years for each perjury count and up to 10 years for obstruction of justice.