KIGALI - Five men, including the secretary general of a breakaway faction of the yet-to-be-registered PS Imberakuri political party, were on Wednesday evening, arrested for attempting to break-into an office building.

According to Police Spokesperson, Chief Superintendent Eric Kayiranga, Sirvain Mwizerwa, and four others, were arrested after the owner of the house alerted the Police. Mwizerwa also doubles as the faction’s spokesperson.

The house is located in Nyamirambo Sector, Nyarugenge District, where the five were arrested from before they were taken to Nyamirambo Police Post. Kayiranga said that the house previously served as the office of the Bernard Ntaganda-led group.

Ntaganda, also in jail over spreading hateful propaganda and inciting ethnic divisions, was in the recent past expelled by PS Imberakuri, which went on to install Christine Mukabunani as its new leader.

Kayiranga told The New Times yesterday that the incident happened at around 5:25p.m.

The other suspects were identified as Joseph Ndagano, Thomas Ntakirutimana and Steven Nzabandora. The identity of one suspect was not readily available by press time.

"The Police arrived at the scene when the culprits were still breaking some windows and doors, but when they saw them (police officers), they ran and hid in some rooms in the same building where they were later found,” Kayiranga said.

The Police Spokesperson said as he was hiding inside the house, Mwizerwa immediately called BBC and Voice of America journalists, alleging that the Police were harassing and intimidating them, and violating their rights.

Several efforts to get a comment from the owner of the house, Hussein Manzour, were futile as he could not answer our calls.

But, according to Kayiranga, the landlord was unwilling to allow them back into the office, reportedly because they were not good tenants.

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