GASABO - The Prosecution is looking for at least forty people believed to have had a hand in the ill-fated Microfinance Institutions (MFIs). Among those wanted included former MPs and a pastor, Deputy Prosecutor General Alphonse Hitiyaremye has said.

They are believed to have misappropriated depositors’ cash in a number of MFIs, which the Government had to close down about two years ago.

Meanwhile 35 other people including five pastors were recently arrested and charged in connection with the case.

Hitiyaremye said that out of these, only eight remain behind bars while others were granted provisional release on various grounds.

A prominent city pastor, Bishop Charles Rwandamura (United Christian Church – UCC) of Gwiza Microfinance is one of the pastors who were temporarily released, the other being Edward Ngendahayo (African Methodist Episcopal Church) of Intera Microfinance.

"Churches are free to do business but ought to be careful not to misuse depositors’ funds,” Hitiyaremye told The New Times in his office at Kimihurura.

"There is a belief that some pastors turn tithes and offerings collected from their congregation into capital and invest it in business to support their churches but they normally lack professional guidance,” he added.

Efforts to get a comment from Rwandamura were futile as a person who answered his phone said the pastor unavailable because he was in prayers. Similarly, Ngendahayo could not be reached by press time.

Hitiyaremye noted that the six pastors have already been arrested, interrogated and charged with causing heavy losses to several Microfinance Institutions (MFIs).

He identified other accused pastors as Felix Uwamahoro (African Methodist Episcopal Church), Elly Habimana and Corneille Nkundamahoro. The trio is also linked to the defunct Intera Microfinance.

Hitiyaremye said that another pastor, Francois Xavier Tugirimana of Solution Church, formerly a manager of Igisubizo Microfinance, jumped bail.

The deputy PG observed that those still in custody were mainly board presidents or managing directors of the dissolved MFIs.

"All files have been handed over to courts because we concluded all the necessary investigations; it is now for the courts to decide,” Hitiyaremye said.

He added that the Prosecution has pleaded with courts to handle these cases urgently. Most of these suspects will be tried at first instance in Nyarugenge and Kacyiru lower instance courts.

Sources from Kigali International Airport told The New Times that a passenger (names withheld) was Wednesday held for few minutes before boarding a plane for having similar names with one of the wanted former bankers.

The arrests began in April after a whole year of investigations into the irregularities that culminated into the closure of at least nine MFIs.

The Government has since compensated affected depositors with fifty percent of their stolen deposits, and the Prosecution believes the other half will be obtained from the culprits themselves.

The MFIs in question are Gasabo, Intambwe, Igisubizo, Ongera, Urumuri, Urugero, Gwiza, Ubumwe-Iwacu and Iwacu.

The Government has parted with a whooping Frw 3 billion to compensate the victims.

The Prosecution is at the same time pursuing clients who illegally obtained loans from the ill-fated MFIs and never serviced them.

Following the closure of the MFIs in question, the Government channelled all transactions previously handled by the liquidated banks to Banque Populaire du Rwanda, a local cooperative-cum-commercial bank with branches across the country.

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