RWANDA TRIBUNAL ASKS TANZANIA FOR CUSTODY OF DETAINED INVESTIGATOR

Arusha, May 22, 2001 (FH) A judge of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) on Monday granted the Prosecutor's request for provisional detention of arrested ICTR defence investigator Siméon Nshamihigo, and ordered his immediate transfer to ICTR custody. Nshamihigo was arrested by Tanzanian authorities on Saturday, at the request of the ICTR Prosecutor.

He is being detained by Tanzania on immigration charges, but is also suspected of involvement in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda. The court order has been granted under Rule 40 bis of the ICTR's Rules of Procedure and Evidence, allowing provisional detention for 30 days if the judge considers that "there is a reliable and consistent body of material which tends to show that the suspect may have committed a crime over which the Tribunal has jurisdiction". The period of provisional detention is renewable, but cannot exceed 90 days in total. Nshamihigo was state prosecutor for Cyangugu, southwest Rwanda, at the time of the 1994 genocide. Before his arrest, he had been working as an ICTR defence investigator for former military commander of Cyangugu barracks Samuel Imanishimwe, using an assumed name and a Congolese passport. He is expected to be transferred to the UN detention facility in Arusha shortly. JC/FH (NG0522e)

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