Nyarugenge Intermediate Court will on Tuesday, December 6 start the substantive hearing trial of Emmanuel Nibishaka, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Rwanda Governance Board (RGB), who is accused of fraud and use of forged documents.

Nibishaka was arrested on May 21, and his case was submitted to the National Public Prosecution Authority on May 26.

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In June, Kicukiro Primary Court denied bail to Nibishaka and sent him on a 30-day remand.

During the hearing, Nibishaka admitted all the crimes and explained how he committed them.

The documents in question include a forged travel clearance he allegedly used to travel to Kenya and invitations, as well as emails he said he used to scam people whom he promised to help their children get US visas.

It was noted that, on various occasions, since September last year, Nibishaka collected about $ 21,800, (approx. Rwf22,421,300) from different people with a promise to help them get visas to the US for studies.

In addition, the suspect admitted to have forged invitations to meetings in the US as well as emails using another person's account.

The defendant also altered the date and destination of a previous travel clearance and used it to travel to Kenya, allegedly after getting wind of the criminal case against him, according to prosecution.

Senior civil servants are always required to seek authorisation from the Prime Minister before travelling out of the country.

If he is convicted of fraud, the suspect could face an imprisonment term between two and three years, and a fine of not less than Rwf3 million but not more than Rwf5 million, according to the law determining offences and penalties in Rwanda.

While knowingly making use of a forged document in any way, he is liable for imprisonment for a term of not less than five years but not more than seven years and a fine of not less than Rwf3 million and not more than Rwf5 million or only one of these penalties.

Who is Nibishaka?

Nibishaka was appointed the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Rwanda Governance Board (RGB) in July 2019.

Before joining RGB, he served as the Secretary General of the National Human Rights Commission (NCHR), Republic of Rwanda (2017-2019).

He also worked as a Rwandan diplomat in the US, serving as the First Counsellor at Rwanda’s mission to the United Nations in New York (Jan 2013-August 2017).

He also led the International Politics programme of the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation, Southern Africa’s Office in Johannesburg before joining the Diplomatic Services of the Government of Rwanda in 2013.

Nibishaka also holds a Postgraduate Diploma in International Law and Practice of the United Nations from the New York University School of Law.