Four soldiers of Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) were recently introduced in the case where retired Major Habib Mudathiru and 24 others belonging to the Rwandan National Congress (RNC) are being tried in the Military High Court.

The four soldiers; Private Dieudonne Muhire, Corporal Viateur Kayiranga, Corporal Jean Bosco Dusabimana and Champagnat Igitego alongside two civilians Richard Nzafashwanimana and Pacifique Muhire are accused of working with another anti-Rwanda militia group called FLN.

The six are being charged with among other crimes: willingly joining an irregular armed group, complicity in plotting against the current government or causing change of government through war or whatever kind of force, and playing part in a group that perpetrates terror activities.

Muhire who is considered as the ring leader of the group is also accused of deserting the Rwanda Defence Force.

According to prosecution, before deserting the army, Muhire was an RDF soldier attached to Mukamira Barracks in Nyabihu District.

Prosecutors said that in 2017, Muhire was involved in theft of a cheque worth Rwf1.9 million, something that led to his arrest. However, military prosecution says that he escaped from detention and fled to Uganda.

While in the neighbouring country, Muhire established contact with anti-Rwandan terror groups including those from Rwanda National Congress and FDLR.

He later moved to the Democratic Republic of Congo via Burundi.

In DR Congo, he went to Minembwe forest in South Kivu where RNC maintained their camp and here he joined with other members of the militia including a one Jean Bosco Ruhinda who was also an RDF deserter.

Ruhinda is part of the 25 suspects led by Mudathiru.

According to prosecution, Muhire was in RNC for a short time before the militia split into factions.

Muhire is said to have followed one of the splinter groups – one led by Noble Marara another Rwandan dissident.

It is this group that later birthed the FLN, with Callixte Nsabimana (also in custody in Rwanda) as their Spokesperson.

In FLN, Muhire was assigned responsibility of mobilising fighters to join the terror group.

He then started talking to old colleagues he had worked with in RDF, convincing them to join the militia group.

Corporal Viateur Kayiranga, Corporal Jean-Bosco Dusabimana and Private Champagnat Igitego were some of those RDF soldiers he frequently communicated to, in addition to several civilians trying to recruit them.

In the process of trying to convince them, he is said to have told those he was talking to that they would be given 5000 US dollars that they will leave for their families.

Igitego, Kayiranga, and Dusabimana were arrested along with two civilians; Muhire and Nzafashwanimana, while some of their accomplices like Corporal Phocas Mudatenguha and Private Dan Nshimiyimana, are still at large, according to military prosecution.

During the court session on Tuesday, prosecution played an audio of a phone call between Muhire and Corporal Dusabimana (an RDF soldier). The call was reportedly made during the time when there were instabilities in the Nyungwe National Park in 2018 due to insurgencies by FLN.

In the audio, Muhire is heard asking Dusabimana: "How ready are you to confront those boys that are in Nyungwe?” He continued discouraging him from "going into wars that he doesn’t even know how they started.”

FLN made two insurgencies in southwestern Rwanda; on one occasion, they attacked a trading centre called Nyabimata in Nyaruguru District, where they killed two people, robbed a SACCO and burnt a vehicle, among others.

A few days later, they waylaid at least three passenger buses in Nyungwe forest, where they killed two people and kidnapped passengers, who were later rescued by RDF, which at the time killed a number of the assailants.

Meanwhile, on this end of the call, Dusabimana is heard saying that he was not ready to go into the battle, and he was not going to die for nothing. He also promised Muhire that he was available and could mobilise more fighters (perhaps to join the outfit).

During the same phone conversation, Muhire is also heard asking Dusabimana for information concerning places where RDF garrisons were stationed.

How they were arrested:

Prosecution said that it was Corporal Dusabimana who was arrested first and facilitated the arrest of Muhire after using the former as bait.

According to prosecution, when Dusabimana was arrested, he was ordered to speak to Muhire and ask him to come to pick him at the border. When Muhire came, he was only met by security operatives who apprehended him in March 2019.

He was arrested along with a civilian (Pacifique Muhire) who rode him on a motorcycle to the border point where he expected to meet Dusabimana.

Pacifique Muhire also faces charges in relation to joining anti-Rwanda rebel groups.

For Corporal Kayiranga and Private Igitego, they were apprehended after investigators established their relationship with Muhire. They are said to have been frequently communicating with Muhire while they were in South Sudan on a peacekeeping mission.

They were apprehended when they returned to Rwanda where they were plotting the next phase of their plans to join the FLN.

Meanwhile, a Burera-based motorcyclist Richard Nzafashwanimana is part of the group and he is accused of transporting people across the border to Uganda where they linked up with anti-Rwanda militia groups.