Two male suspects in the murder case of a 25-year-old woman appeared before Nyarugenge Intermediate Court in Kigali on Thursday, November 7, seeking to have their 30-day remand overturned.

Fred Nasagambe and Gideon Gatera, both accused of having a role in the death of Olga Kayirangwa, were sentenced to the pre-trial detention by Kicukiro Primary Court on October 21, pending further investigation into the case.

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Nasagambe, 28, is accused of murder while Gatare, 29, is accused of complicity in murder.

During Thursday’s appeal hearing, the duo and their defence lawyers denied any role in the death of the Kayirangwa, who died on September 26, after she had visited them at their residence on the same day.

They said that the Kicukiro Primary Court judge had misinterpreted the doctor’s report on the cause of Kayirangwa’s death. Prosecutors say she died at Nasagambe’s home, though the defendants say she died at Dream Medical Centre (DMC) where they had taken her for medical attention.

The primary court judge said the post-mortem report indicated that the woman had been engaged in sexual activity before her death and that she had injuries on her neck and chest. The judge ruled that there were reasonable grounds to suspect the two men of murder.

The defence side told Nyarugenge Intermediate Court on Thursday that the report did not specify the cause of Kayirangwa’s death, asking the judge to overturn the decision to detain them from 30 days.

They said the court might need to summon the authors of the report, which was prepared in English, to explain some of the technical terms they used in order to avoid any misinterpretation during translation into Kinyarwanda.

The Prosecution side asked the intermediate court to analyse the report to see if the judge would agree with the primary court decision. The Prosecution said the two men should remain in custody, as investigation is ongoing.