Cibitoke : a trader under torture for five days in the cell of the National Intelligence Service

Jean Claude Bizimana alias Vyagizimana, a trader from Munyuka village, is detained in the cell of the National Intelligence Service (SNR) in Cibitoke where he is subjected to acts of torture, according to members of his family who say they do not know the motives for his arrest.
He was arrested on May 31 at the 2nd avenue in Munyika 1 village in Rugombo district of Cibitoke province (northwest Burundi). The provincial governor and the prosecutor say they are aware of this arrest.

INFO SOS Médias Burundi

According to a source close to the case, Vyagizimana has been under torture for 5 days.

“Vyagizimana is currently in critical condition. He is undergoing various corporal punishments in the cells of the National Intelligence Service in our province,” our source said.

One of the traders who witnessed his arrest said, “He was in his shop full of goods. He was quickly handcuffed by intelligence agents on Friday. He is a man without any fuss who carries out several commercial activities,” our source informs.

Other traders and neighbors tried to intervene to prevent this arrest, which they consider illegal, without success. For the moment, various converging sources indicate that this father of six children is being questioned by the head of intelligence in Cibitoke.

“No one knows until now the motive for his arrest. Members of his family are very worried and are not allowed to visit him,” the same sources said angrily.

His family speaks of an innocent man who committed no crime. “Even if that would be the case, we ask that he be presented before the judicial authorities to rule on his case,” said one of his brothers, visibly tired.

After trying several avenues, as one of the traders indicated, they were forced to contact the governor of Cibitoke. But he in turn sent them to the office of the public prosecutor of Cibitoke. The two Cibitoke authorities claim to be aware of this case and say they have initiated contacts with the head of the national intelligence service.

For his part, the head of the SNR in Cibitoke indicates that Vyagizimana was apprehended for investigative reasons without being precise.

————–

Illustration photo : the SNR office in Cibitoke in the same intelligence cell in the province