The prosecution has in the last three years taken on financial and economic crimes, winning cases that in total will recoup Rwf3bn, The New Times learned yesterday. However, only a small fraction of that amount has been recovered. Speaking during an exclusive interview yesterday, the Prosecutor General Jean-Bosco Mutangana said that a lot of progress has been made in investigating and prosecuting these cases. “The conviction rate for offenders has steadily increased to 84.1 percent this year which means Prosecution cases are thoroughly investigated which is an advantage when it comes to winning cases,” he said. Mutangana’s interview coincides with this year’s Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee hearing in which several government officials and institutions have been criticized for mismanaging government funds. Going after the ‘Big Fish’ Mutangana, who threatened to go after the financial and economic crime ‘Big Fish’ said that there has been progress not only in bringing those responsible to justice but also in recovering the money. “In the fiscal year 2016/2017, prosecution received 516 files that are connected to economic crimes. Among those, 373 involving Rwf4.5 billion were reviewed and handed to courts of law. In this year 2017/2018, prosecution has so received 460 files. 277 of these files were completed, and 190 of them, which involved 232 suspects were handed over to the courts of law. The total amount involved was Rwf135m,” he said. In 2016/2017, the prosecution took to court over 357 files in which 495 suspects were implicated in financial crimes that total up to Rwf3.5bn. Among these, 370 suspects were found guilty for their involvement in crimes involving Rwf3.1bn and fined them Rwf3.8bn. In the same year 2017/2018, the prosecutor’s office prosecuted 153 cases and the 188 individuals were found guilty in these cases. They were ordered to refund Rwf1bn and were fined Rwf1.2bn. In the 2014/2015 Auditor General’s Report, the preliminary investigations are in the final phase (96.6 percent) and involve 95 institutions. In the 2015/2016, in the year that ended in June 2016, the Auditor General handed the prosecutor general’s office 59 institutions that are supposed to be investigated. So far, only Rwf225m and $3500 was recovered before cases were filed and a Rwf4.2m fine was also paid. All this money went straight to government coffers. On May 3, the Prosecutor General’s Office received the 2016/2017 AG Report and according to Mutangana, the Rwanda Investigation Bureau (RIB) had commenced investigations on the matters raised in the report. editorial@newtimes.co.rw
