Bukinanyana: a sixty-year-old hacked to death with a machete

Collette Nduwimana, 69, was murdered with a machete on the night of July 20 to 21. The incident occured in Myave locality, Ndora zone, Bukinanyana commune in Cibitoke province (northwest of Burundi). The municipal administration speaks of an ongoing investigation. Land conflicts are believed to be the cause of this murder.

INFO SOS Médias Burundi

Collette Nduwimana was killed by unknown persons, according to neighbors. The widow who lived with her 22-year-old grandson was caught sleeping, her relatives say.

“We were alerted by moans. When we arrived at Collette’s home, it was too late. The cry we heard was actually her last breath,” witnesses lament. They indicate that the victim had just won a trial in the provincial court in a case of land disputes between him and relatives. Local sources in Myave believe that this murder is linked to this case.

Residents believe that it is inconceivable that a person could be killed in an area where the Imbonerakure (members of the CNDD-FDD youth league) regularly conduct night patrols, “particularly equipped with bladed weapons”.

The municipal administration speaks of an ongoing investigation to identify the motives and perpetrators of this murder which brings to nearly 70 the number of people murdered in Cibitoke since the beginning of the year according to a count by SOS Médias Burundi.