Rwandan genocide suspect appears in court holding Bible after 22 years on run

Fulgence Kayishema sits in the Magistrate’s Court in Cape Town, South Africa, Friday, May 26, 2023. Kayishema, a former police officer, is one of the most wanted suspects in Rwanda’s genocide (Nardus Engelbrecht/AP/PA)

One of Rwanda’s most wanted suspects for the country’s 1994 genocide appeared in a South African courtroom on Friday, clutching a Bible and another book inscribed “Jesus First” on the cover.

Fulgence Kayishema was a police officer with the rank of inspector when he allegedly orchestrated the killings of more than 2,000 people – including children – as they tried to seek refuge in a church during the first days of the genocide.