The intermediate court of Nyarugenge on Tuesday, November 13, dismissed a petition from the suspects in Olga Kayirangwa’s case, who requested for a different judge citing concerns about receiving a fair trial.

ALSO READ: Suspects in Olga Kayirangwa's death reject intermediate court judge

The two suspects, Fred Nasagambe, 28, and Gideon Gatare, 29, face charges related to the death of 25-year-old Kayirangwa, who died after visiting Nasagambe’s residence in Kigali on September 29. Nasagambe is charged with murder while Gatare faces complicity charges.

The suspects are currently in custody, following a decision by Kicukiro Primary Court, which found reasonable grounds for suspecting them.

They appealed the remand decision at the intermediate court of Nyarugenge. But as the trial process got underway, they rejected the judge assigned to their case after he rejected their request to summon the experts who conducted the post-mortem, a key piece of evidence presented at the primary court.

During the bail ruling at the primary court of Kicukiro, last month, the 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.

However, the judge’s claim contradicted explanations presented by defence lawyers during the hearing, since they had presented a report that showed that the woman had not engaged in sexual activity.

In their appeal, the suspects told the intermediate court that the Kicukiro Primary Court judge misinterpreted the doctor’s report on the cause of Kayirangwa’s death.