Police in Kigarama Sector, Kicukiro District are investigating a case where unknown people attacked a cow belonging to Ferdinand Mukurira, hacking it several times and leaving it for dead.

The incident which happened in the wee hours of last night has prompted local authorities and residents of the sector to link it to genocide ideology mostly because of the timing and the fact that Mukurira is a genocide survivor.

Mukurira, who is preparing to join other survivors in the 23^rd commemoration of the Genocide against Tutsi later this week, is said to have been shaken by the incident.

The Kigarama Sector veterinary officer, Marie Claire Ingabire, who was at the scene trying to save the cow, told The New Times that the injuries were very deliberate and deep.

She said that the situation was even more complicated because the cow was expecting a calf in a few weeks.  

"It is too early to determine whether the cow will survive or not because its neck sustained very deep injuries. It can stand but it’s still very weak. We are working with Rwanda Agricultural Board (RAB) and we are doing everything possible to save both cow and calf,” she said.

Mukurira received the cow under the ‘Girinka programme’ in the 2014/2015 giveaway.

This is not the first time such incident has happened.

In April last year, in Mubuga Sector, Karongi District, a cow belonging to genocide survivor Joseph Nyombayire and his wife Marie Mukantagara had its legs chopped off by unknown assailants.

In September 2014, in Kamabuye and Ngeruka Sectors, both of Bugesera District, residents woke up to cows with no calves, tails and some even more injured when unknown people attacked their animals in the wee hours of the night.