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- SA authorities arrested Rwandan fugitive Fulgence Kayishema in Paarl on Wednesday.
- A spokesperson for the Hawks said he used a false identity.
- Authorities have been searching for Kayishema since 2002.
South African authorities arrested Rwandan fugitive Fulgence Kayishema in Paarl, Western Cape, on Wednesday.
Brigadier Thandi Mbambo, the spokesperson for the Hawks, said Kayishema was arrested by the South African Operational Task Team comprised of Crime Intelligence, NPA and government departments, including Home Affairs and Justice.
The authorities have been searching for Kayishema since 2002, in connection with the Rwandan genocide in 1994.
Kayishema, 61, was arrested on an Interpol Red Notice, which was issued by the UN International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals.
READ | Rwanda's most wanted genocide fugitive arrested in SA after three decades on the run
He is charged with genocide, conspiracy to commit genocide and crimes against humanity.
Mbambo said Kayishema lived under the false identity of Donatien Nibashumba.
Mbambo said: "According to the arrest warrant issued, the fugitive was the police inspector in Rwanda who allegedly played a significant role in the planning and execution of genocide, where more than 2 000 people were killed in 1994."
News24 reported earlier that the UN criminal tribunal's chief prosecutor, Serge Brammertz, commended President Cyril Ramaphosa and the government for their role in the effort to arrest Kayishema.
He said:
Mbambo said General Godfrey Lebeya, the head of the Hawks, commended the authorities for the arrest.
He said it demonstrated the power of cooperation among international authorities to arrest fugitives.
"It proves that, however long it takes, the law enforcement community will keep searching for fugitives until they are located and arrested," said Lebeya.
Justice Minister Ronald Lamola congratulated authorities on the arrest.
"With this arrest, two emphatic statements cannot be refuted: that the long arm of the law knows no time bounds and South Africa is not willing to be a safe haven for fugitives. We will continue to assist other countries and international bodies to trace fugitives. We expect the same from other countries."
Kayishema will appear in the Bellville Magistrate's Court on Friday.
