An Ohio man who immigrated to the U.S. from Rwanda participated in that nation's genocide in 1994 and lied on his Visa to live in the U.S., the Justice Department claimed.
Vincent Nzigiyimfura, 65, also known as Vincent Mfura, 65, of Dayton, Ohio, is charged with one count of visa fraud and two counts of attempted naturalization fraud. If convicted, he faces a statutory maximum penalty of 30 years in prison.
According to federal prosecutors, Nzigiyimfura concealed that he had participated in the genocide that took place between April and July 1994, when members of Rwanda's majority Hutu population killed hundreds of thousands of the country's minority Tutsi ethnic group.
"As alleged, Vincent Nzigiyimfura directed and encouraged murders during the genocide in Rwanda and then lied to U.S. authorities to start a new life in this country," said Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the Justice Department's Criminal Division. "The United States is not a safe haven for human rights violators."
Nzigiyimfura, a Rwandan businessman and butcher, was allegedly a leader and organizer of the genocide around Gihisi and Nyanza. Federal prosecutors claim that Nzigiyimfura provided material support and directed people to search for, apprehend, and kill Tutsis. This included allegedly setting up roadblocks to detain Tutsis and a scheme to trick Tutsis into thinking the killings had stopped only to have them rounded up and murdered.
"No one wants a war criminal as their neighbor and these allegations paint a grim picture of the horror Nzigiyimfura inflicted on the Tutsi people. His indictment and arrest is a step toward justice for those victims," said acting Special Agent in Charge Jared Murphey of ICE HSI Detroit.
Federal prosecutors alleged that after the genocide ended, Nzigiyimfura fled Rwanda and ended up living in Malawi. Prosecutors alleged that he began submitting misleading information visa and alien registration in 2008 and 2009.
"Nzigiyimfura submitted an affidavit in which he misleadingly claimed he 'left Rwanda in 1994 due to the Genocide,' when in fact, he fled the country because of his participation in the persecution and massacre of Tutsis," prosecutors stated.
Nzigiyimfura has live in the U.S. in 2009.
