A request by a former bodyguard of President Paul Kagame for a public hearing of his case was rejected by a military court in Kigali, citing security concerns surrounding the matter.

On Monday, the lawyer representing Lt Joel Mutabazi, Antoinette Mukamusoni, told the Court Martial sitting at Nyamirambo that her client was regarded innocent until proven guilty and had instructed her to apply for his case to be conducted in open court.

Present at the packed court were officials from the US, the UK and the Netherlands as Lt Mutabazi was arraigned in court under heavily security.

Speaking for the first time since his case began last month, Lt Mutabazi pleaded with the presiding judge, Captain Charles Sumanyi, not to allow his case to be heard in camera.

“I am not a lawyer but I would like my case to be heard in the open,” Lt Mutabazi said.

Military prosecutors had earlier asked the court to prevent members of the public, including journalists, from attending the proceedings.

Security concerns

Lt Mutabazi’s request was however turned down on grounds that his case involved military issues and therefore the prosecution had valid security concerns.

Before journalists were sent out, however, an eerie silence descended on the court when Lt Mutabazi attempted to give a relative a handshake but was quickly pulled back by a soldier guarding him.

The soldier cautioned Lt Mutabazi against inviting unnecessary problems for himself.

Lt Mutabazi, 37, is charged with six counts – illegal possession of arms, terrorism, spreading harmful propaganda about the current Rwandan government, murder and conspiracy to murder, and formation of terrorist groups.

The Israeli-trained commando had alleged persecution from the government and deserted the Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF) before he fled to Uganda, where he had been living as a refugee under the protection of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees.

However, he was controversially extradited from Uganda last month and handed back to Kigali. He lived with his family at Sky Hotel in the Kampala suburb of Naalya.

Bank robbery

Interestingly, although Rwandan and Ugandan police had alleged that Lt Mutabazi was on Kigali’s wanted list over an alleged bank robbery in 2011, the accusation was missing from the charge sheet when he first appeared in court.

On Monday, some of his 14 co-accused pleaded guilty to charges that included joining armed groups, forming armed groups and harming and destabilising the current government.

Police also accused Lt Mutabazi of subversive activities and working with the Rwandan renegade Major-General Kayumba Nyamwasa, accusations that he has denied.