Rutana: twenty years in prison for arson and aggravated theft

SOS Médias Burundi

Rutana, August 16, 2025 – The Rutana First Instance Court, in the southern province of Burunga, sentenced Égide Njejimana on Thursday, August 14, 2025, to twenty years of penal servitude for arson and aggravated theft.

According to the judgment, on the night of August 10, 2025, the defendant set fire to the kitchen of Léonie Mpfayokurera, before breaking into the house of trader Alexis Ndayishimiye, located in Matutu village, Kivoga zone (Rutana district), from where he stole 4.8 million Burundi francs.

Found guilty, in part, on the basis of testimony from children he allegedly used to commit the crimes, Égide Njejimana will have to pay 4.8 million BIF to Alexis Ndayishimiye and 2 million BIF to Léonie Mpfayokurera, under penalty of thirty years of imprisonment. He will also have to pay 4% of these amounts to the public treasury, as well as court costs.