Hitman given Rwf 875,000 in plot to kill Kayumba Nyamwasa – court hears

Source RNA

Kigali: One of the top suspects in the plot to assassinate ex-army chief Kayumba Nyamwasa was given 10,000 Rands (Approx. Rwf 875,000) to be part of the group that included people from Europe, Tanzania and Rwanda, court has been told in the ongoing trial.

Former Rwandan soldier Amani Uriwani was given the money by people who had “a lot of money and cars”, according to prosecution witness, Kalisa Mubarak. He has been living in South Africa, and knew Uriwani since they were children in Rwanda.

Prosecution led by senior attorney Shaun Abrahams told the Johannesburg magistrate's court it was believed Uriwani was the driver of the get-away vehicle on the day of the shooting.

On the fateful day, Nyamwasa and his wife were coming from shopping when a man approached their car and asked the drive to open the car window.

The next few minutes saw Kayumba shot. But the plot failed because the gun that was used to shoot the exiled general "malfunctioned" during the alleged assassination attempt. The court heard how Nyamwasa was shot once, with the bullet still lodged in his "lower spinal cord" to this day.

As the general struggled for his life and his wife screamed for help, the alleged assassins fled in a waiting car. Behind the wheels of this gate-away car, prosecution alleges that it was Amani Uriwani.

Two body guards sat nearby as he testified in English and Kinyarwanda. He wore dark glasses and sat in the witness stand with his chin sunk in a black-and-white checked scarf draped around his neck, according to The Associated Press.

Prosecutors say Mubarak has been moved with his wife and three children to a secret location under a witness protection program.

Mubarak said that former Rwandan soldier Uriwani told him about being recruited by some European-based Rwandans to help with a job in Johannesburg.

The 36-year-old witness Mubarak claims that he tried to talk him out of the plan, but Uriwani refused.

Prosecution says it will prove that the accused number five, Tanzanian national Hemedi Denengo Sefu, was the shooter. No mention yet has been made of the role of the other accused - Hassann Mohammedi Nduli, Sady Abdou.

While the five accused seemed to have each played significant roles in the alleged hit, Rwandan and Belgian dual citizen Pascal Kanyandekwe emerged as the most powerful figure in the group. It was alleged that he was the brains behind the plot, since he was said to have recruited his three co-accused to murder Nyamwasa.

While his five co-accused face charges of attempted murder with an alternative charge of conspiracy to murder, unlawful possession of a firearm as well as unlawful possession of ammunition, Kanyandekwe would also face a second alternative charge of incitement to commit murder as well as a charge of corruption. He tried to give two South African detectives US$1million in cash if they let him go as they arrested him at the airport.

The trial continues.