Felicien Kabuga: A Life Fit for a Blockbuster

 

 If East Africa ever needed a character to inspire a box-office movie, Felicien Kabuga’s life would undoubtedly top the list. His story has it all: love, tragedy, war, espionage, and one of history’s most infamous crimes. Surprisingly, much of the intrigue surrounding Kabuga's escape from justice for 26 years involves Kenya, where some of the key players frustrating his capture were based.

The saga finally ended on May 16, 2020, when Kabuga was arrested in Paris. This frail 84-year-old, once one of the world’s most wanted men, had evaded justice for decades. His capture was the result of meticulous investigation, aided by modern technology. Investigators tracked him through the phones of his children, which all pointed to a single address in the Paris suburb of Asnières-sur-Seine. Surveillance was set up, and despite uncertainties, a raid was conducted, leading to his arrest.

Kabuga’s crimes are tied to the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, during which nearly one million Tutsis and moderate Hutus were brutally murdered. Kabuga played a central role, funding and facilitating the massacre through his vast wealth and influence. Shockingly, his connections extended deeply into Kenya, where his operations were protected by powerful individuals.

In Kenya, the name Kabuga first gained public attention in 2003 with the murder of freelance journalist William Mwangi. Mwangi had been working with the FBI to expose Kabuga, but he was assassinated before completing his mission. Investigations revealed a leak of sensitive information to Kabuga, implicating high-ranking officials within Kenya’s government and security agencies. Mwangi’s death was officially ruled a suicide, a narrative many dismissed as a cover-up.

Even after Mwangi’s murder, Kabuga continued to operate from Kenya under aliases, relying on diplomatic passports and a network of influential allies. In January 2008, reports surfaced of his arrest in Nairobi. However, hours later, the authorities released him, citing mistaken identity—another instance of interference by powerful forces. Following this, Kabuga is believed to have shifted his base out of Kenya, though his business interests in the country remained intact.

Kabuga’s dark legacy is rooted in deep-seated hatred for the Tutsi tribe, reportedly inherited from his family. This hatred intensified following a tragic family incident: his brother, Nzombé, fell in love with a Tutsi woman against the family’s wishes. Their relationship ended in heartbreak and violence, with Nzombé killing his lover and then himself. This event, some say, may have pushed Kabuga further down his path of hatred and destruction.

Though Kabuga was known as a shrewd entrepreneur and a seemingly kind individual, his involvement in the genocide remains one of the most chilling paradoxes of modern history. His capture brings relief to many but also underscores the decades of complicity, corruption, and tragedy that allowed him to evade justice for so long.