Law & Justice
Vincent Brown bailed in UK Rwanda genocide case
Vincent Brown, a 65-year-old British-Rwandan man, was granted bail after appearing in a London court charged over alleged involvement in the 1994 Rwanda genocide, the first such prosecution in a UK court.
Brown, formerly known as Vincent Bajinya, is accused of being an ancillary to genocide and aiding crimes against humanity. Prosecutor Jane Stansfield told the court that Brown was a “party” to six murders in Kigali in April 1994 and was “a leader or supervisor of physical acts of violence which were carried out by others”.
Stansfield said the alleged victims were three members of the same household, a local taxi driver, and a young woman and her baby. Brown, who worked as a doctor at the time, spoke to confirm his name, date of birth and address. He did not enter a plea.
Brown's lawyer Sam Blom-Cooper told the court that Brown wanted to clear his name.
Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring granted Brown bail on condition that his family pay £25,000 security. Because of the seriousness of the allegations, Goldspring transferred the case to the Central Criminal Court, known as the Old Bailey, where Brown is due to appear on October 9.
The Crown Prosecution Service and London police said Brown had been charged with one count of being an ancillary to genocide and six offences of aiding crimes against humanity in Rwanda. Frank Ferguson, head of the Crown Prosecution Service's special crime and counter terrorism division, said Brown is alleged to have directed and incited acts of murder and genocide carried out by others against the Tutsi.
Brown arrived in Britain in 2000 after living in Kigali and became a British citizen in 2005, the court heard. He was first arrested in 2006, but his extradition to Rwanda was refused by a British court in 2017 after a long process. Rwanda then asked the UK government to investigate the allegations.
Some 800,000 people, mostly Tutsis and moderate Hutus, were killed during about 100 days of slaughter in Rwanda in 1994. The genocide followed years of tension between Hutu and Tutsi populations and was triggered by the death of president Juvenal Habyarimana, whose plane was hit by two missiles.
Update
Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring granted Vincent Brown bail.
Brown's family must pay £25,000 security as a bail condition.
The case was transferred to the Central Criminal Court, known as the Old Bailey.
Brown is due to appear at the Old Bailey on October 9.
Brown's lawyer Sam Blom-Cooper told the court that Brown wanted to clear his name.
Source note: AFP news report published on 22 September 2026 at 13:47:57 UTC.
Update
Vincent Brown appeared in a UK court and became the first person to do so charged with involvement in the 1994 Rwanda genocide.
Prosecutors told the court Brown was a party to six murders in Kigali in April 1994.
A prosecutor said Brown was a leader or supervisor of physical acts of violence carried out by others.
Brown did not enter a plea, and a judge was due to rule on a bail application later Tuesday.
Prosecutors identified the alleged victims as three members of one household, a local taxi driver, and a young woman and her baby.
Source note: AFP news report published on 22 September 2026 at 11:38:57 UTC.
Update
Vincent Brown is in custody and is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Tuesday.
London police said their War Crimes Team began the investigation in September 2019.
Brown was first arrested in 2006, but a British court refused his extradition to Rwanda in 2017.
Rwanda later asked the UK government to investigate people allegedly involved in genocide in the Rugenge district of Kigali in April 1994.
Counter Terrorism Policing London said other UK investigations into similar Rwanda genocide offences remain ongoing.
Source note: AFP news report published on 21 September 2026 at 17:35:17 UTC.
Update
The charged person is Vincent Brown, 65.
He was arrested and charged on Monday.
He faces one count of being an ancillary to genocide and six offences of aiding crimes against humanity in Rwanda.
UK prosecutors described the charges as the first such charges in the UK.
Prosecutors said the case followed a complex seven-year investigation.
Frank Ferguson of the Crown Prosecution Service alleged Brown directed and incited acts of murder and genocide against the Tutsi.
Source note: AFP news report published on 21 September 2026 at 16:42:20 UTC.
Uncertainty notes
Brown has not entered a plea.
The allegations have not been tested at trial.
Source
AFP news report published on .