UK prosecutors charge first person over Rwanda genocide

British prosecutors have charged a 65-year-old doctor over his alleged involvement in the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, marking the first time such charges have been brought in the United Kingdom.

Vincent Brown, formerly known as Vincent Bajinya, was arrested on Monday following a seven-year investigation. He faces one charge of conduct ancillary to genocide and six charges relating to aiding crimes against humanity in Rwanda.

The Crown Prosecution Service said the charges concern allegations that Brown participated in the genocide and directed or encouraged others to carry out acts of murder and genocide.

Frank Ferguson, head of the Crown Prosecution Service's counter-terrorism division, said the case represented the first charges brought in Britain specifically concerning the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.

Brown, originally from Kigali, is understood to have arrived in Britain as an asylum seeker in 1998. He later became a British citizen and changed his name to Vincent Brown in 2004.

He has worked as a doctor and previously worked for a charity supporting refugee nurses and midwives seeking employment in Britain.

Brown was first arrested in 2006 after Rwanda sought his extradition along with four other men. A British court refused the extradition request in 2017.

Two years later, Metropolitan Police war crimes investigators began a new investigation following a request from the Rwandan government.

Brown is scheduled to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Tuesday.

British police said investigations into several other people suspected of involvement in the Rwandan genocide and now living in Britain are continuing.

Commander Helen Flanagan, head of counter-terror policing, said the case demonstrated that Britain would continue to investigate people suspected of international crimes.

The 1994 Rwandan genocide lasted about 100 days, during which an estimated 800,000 people were killed. The majority of those killed were Tutsi, although moderate Hutu people were also among the victims.

The latest prosecution follows cases in several other countries involving people suspected of participating in the genocide, which remains one of the most significant mass atrocities of the late 20th century.