Georges Ruggiu - Capture, Trial, and Sentencing

Capture, Trial, and Sentencing

After the genocide Ruggiu fled to refugee camps in Zaire and Tanzania and then to Kenya, where he converted to Islam and adopted the name Omar. He "joined a Somali Muslim community in Mombasa" and was "on the verge of fleeing to Iraq" when he was arrested by Kenyan police in 1997.

On July 23, 1997, Ruggiu was arrested in Mombasa at the request of the prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, and moved to the site of the tribunal in Arusha, Tanzania. Ruggiu was charged with "direct and public incitement to commit genocide" and "crimes against humanity (persecution)". During his three-year long trial, Ruggiu expressed regret for his part in events, saying, "I admit that it was indeed a genocide and that unfortunately I took part in it." Ruggiu acknowledged his role in the genocide, admitting that he:

He accepted responsibility for his actions, stating "certain people were killed in Rwanda in 1994 and that I was responsible and culpable." Ruggiu detailed the inner workings of Radio Télévision Libre des Mille Collines, stating the radio station was used to convey "the ideology and plans of Hutu extremists in Rwanda."

On May 15, 2000, Ruggiu pleaded guilty to both charges of indictment, and was sentenced to twelve years in prison by the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda for incitement to commit genocide. He received a relatively short sentence, after agreeing to testify against three suspects who allegedly used the media, most notably RTLM, to fuel the genocide in Rwanda. Rwanda protested the sentence as inadequate.

In February 2008, Ruggiu was flown to Italy to serve out the rest of his 12-year sentence in his country of citizenship. On 21 April 2009, Ruggiu was granted early release by the Italian authorities, a violation of the ICTR Statute.