RPA
MIN 00031/11/HC/MUS
Page |1
THE MUSANZE HIGH COURT, SITTING IN MUSANZE AT ITS HEADQUARTERS,
HEARING CRIMINAL CASE RPAMIN 0001/11 / HC / MUS ON APPEAL, ON
06/07/2011, DECIDES AS FOLLOWS:
PARTIES
APPELLANT: Nshimiyimana Anaclet, son of Ntwari Eugène and Nyiransabiyera, born
in Budende village, Budende cell, Kiyumba sector, Muhanga District in the Southern
Province in 1988, living in Gahondo village, Ruli cell, Ruli sector, Gakenke District in the
Northern Province, Rwandan, single, has not been convicted by a court of law, and is
being prosecuted and remanded in custody.
DEFENDANT: The prosecution is represented by Mukagashugi Agnès, a national
prosecutor.
SUBJECT: Appeal against the judgment RPMin 0008/010 / TGI / MUS passed by the
Musanze High Court on 20/12/2010 (the offense of rape is provided for and punishable
by Article 16 of Law nº 59/2008 on Prevention and Punishment of Gender-Based
Violence).
II. FACTS AND PROCEDURE
[1] Nshimiyimana Anaclet and Ndayambaje Jean de Dieu were arrested on suspicion of
conspiracy to rape Muhawenimana Verediyana. The police launched a preliminary
investigation and handed over the case to the prosecution for further investigation, which
decided to charge them with rape of a girl.
[2] In the judgment RPMin 0008/010 / TGI / MUS passed on 20/11/2010, the Musanze
High Court convicted Nshimiyimana Anaclet and Ndayambaje Jean de Dieu of rape of a
girl named Muhawenimana Verediyana and sentenced Nshimiyimana Anaclet to five
years in prison and Ndayambaje Jean de Dieu to three years in prison, both of whom
were ordered to jointly pay 14,850 Frw. Nshimiyimana Anaclet was dissatisfied with the
judgment and appealed to the Musanze High Court where his appeal was enrolled under
RPAMIN 0001/11 / HC / MUS. In the course of the trial, two issues were considered by
the court, the first of which is to determine whether the guilty plea was a mitigating
circumstance justifying the reduction of the sentence imposed by the first instance court,
and the second question is whether there was a reason of applying different punishments
to Nshimiyimana Anaclet and Ndayambaje Jean de Dieu while they were co-authors of
crime.