{"id":5198,"date":"2026-11-10T08:22:35","date_gmt":"2026-11-10T08:22:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/?p=5198"},"modified":"2026-11-10T08:22:35","modified_gmt":"2026-11-10T08:22:35","slug":"us-deportation-brings-rwanda-genocide-case-against-teganya-back-into-focus","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/2026\/11\/10\/us-deportation-brings-rwanda-genocide-case-against-teganya-back-into-focus\/politics\/","title":{"rendered":"US deportation brings Rwanda genocide case against Teganya back into focus"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Jean L\u00e9onard Teganya’s return to Rwanda after more than three decades abroad marks a new stage in a case that has passed through the immigration and criminal justice systems of Canada and the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The National Public Prosecution Authority (NPPA) confirmed on November 9, 2026, that it had received Teganya following his deportation from the United States, where he was convicted of five offences related to immigration fraud and perjury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rwanda has sought his prosecution since 2014 over alleged involvement in the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi and crimes against humanity committed in the former Butare Prefecture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His American convictions did not concern genocide itself. Rather, they arose from allegations that he concealed his political affiliations and activities during the genocide when seeking asylum in the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The distinction is central to the case now awaiting proceedings in Rwanda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A case built around alleged activities at Butare hospital<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Teganya was born in 1971 in Gatumba Sector, in present-day Ngororero District, Western Province.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before the genocide, he was a medical student at the former National University of Rwanda in Butare and was completing practical training at Butare University Teaching Hospital.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

US court records show that prosecutors presented evidence alleging that he belonged to the MRND and its youth militia, the Interahamwe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The prosecution said he helped lead soldiers and militia members through the hospital searching for Tutsi patients, workers and refugees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the evidence presented during the trial, people identified at the hospital were taken away and killed behind the maternity ward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prosecutors also presented evidence linking him to killings at the hospital and student accommodation, and to the rape of two Tutsi women who had sought refuge at the facility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These allegations formed part of the evidence examined during his American proceedings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How the American prosecution began<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Teganya left Rwanda in July 1994 and travelled through the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya and India before reaching Canada in 1999.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He sought asylum in Canada, but his application was rejected in 2002. Following further legal proceedings and appeals, Canadian authorities rejected his claim again in 2012.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to US court records, he crossed into the United States from Canada on August 3, 2014, near Houlton, Maine. He was arrested after entering the country on foot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teganya subsequently applied for asylum in the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Investigators said he failed to disclose his own alleged membership in the MRND and Interahamwe and information about his activities during the genocide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In August 2017, US authorities began criminal proceedings against him. A federal grand jury in Massachusetts indicted him on September 27, 2017, on two counts of immigration fraud and three counts of perjury.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The case went to trial, which lasted 18 days. Teganya testified in his defence, but a jury found him guilty on all five counts on April 5, 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On July 1, 2019, Judge F. Denis Saylor IV sentenced him to 97 months in prison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The sentencing court also applied an obstruction-of-justice enhancement after finding that his testimony involved false statements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Teganya challenged the convictions and sentence before the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On May 17, 2021, the appeals court upheld the judgment, finding no reversible error in the proceedings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The separate case in Rwanda<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

While the US proceedings dealt with immigration fraud and perjury, Rwanda maintained its own case concerning the alleged crimes committed in Butare during the genocide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The NPPA said it issued an indictment against Teganya in 2014 and submitted evidence concerning his alleged involvement in genocide and crimes against humanity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His deportation now allows Rwandan authorities to pursue the case with him back in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The November 9 announcement did not provide a timetable for his first court appearance or detail the next procedural steps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rwanda credits international cooperation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Faustin Nkusi, spokesperson for the NPPA, said the United States continued to cooperate with Rwanda in cases involving people suspected of genocide crimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said Teganya’s return was part of ongoing collaboration and that the two countries were working on other cases involving suspects believed to be in the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nkusi also said genocide crimes do not expire and that Rwanda would continue pursuing suspects wherever they might be living.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The NPPA thanked US judicial authorities for their assistance in returning suspects, providing legal cooperation and supporting international efforts to end impunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before Teganya’s return, Ahmed Napoleon Mbonyunkiza was among the most recent people sent back to Rwanda from the United States, on March 4, 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other individuals previously returned include Jean-Marie Vianney Mudahinyuka, known as Zuzu; Marie-Claire Mukeshimana; L\u00e9opold Munyakazi; B\u00e9atrice Munyenyezi; and Oswald Rurangwa, also known as Oswald Rukemuye. Enos Kagaba was returned in 2005.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The different legal proceedings involving Teganya illustrate how countries can address separate aspects of allegations concerning international crimes. Immigration proceedings in Canada and the United States dealt with his eligibility to remain in those countries, while the American criminal trial resulted in convictions for immigration-related offences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rwanda’s proceedings will address the allegations concerning his conduct during the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jean L\u00e9onard Teganya’s return to Rwanda after more than three decades abroad marks a new stage in a case that has passed through the immigration […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5199,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43,53,41,34,5,40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5198","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-current_affairs","category-featured-stories","category-hot_topics","category-national","category-politics","category-top_stories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5198","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5198"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5198\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5202,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5198\/revisions\/5202"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5199"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5198"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5198"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thedawnrwanda.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5198"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}