Rwandan genocide accused abandons S.African bail, seeks asylum

FILE PHOTO: Rwandan genocide suspect Fulgence Kayishema appears at the Cape Town Magistrates' Court where 54 new charges were added against him, in Cape Town, South Africa June 9, 2023. REUTERS/Nic Bothma/File Photo

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) - Former Rwandan police officer Fulgence Kayishema, accused of participating in the 1994 Rwandan genocide, has abandoned his application for bail and applied for asylum in South Africa, prosecuting authorities said on Tuesday.

Arrested last month under a false name on a grape farm outside Cape Town, Kayishema has been on the run since 2001, when the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) indicted him for genocide. He stands accused of ordering the death of 2,000 people seeking refuge in a church.