Eugene Kwibuka
25 September 2008
Kigali — Remera Police is holding two youths who were arrested in connection with a motorbike robbery on Sunday (September 21, 2008) near King Faisal Hospital in Kigali City, The New Times has learnt. The accused have pleaded guilty.
Emmanuel Nsabimana, 26, a resident of Gacuriro and Esperance Mukashema,18, an orphan living with her adoptive parents in Nyabisindu village of Gasabo District said that they have been helping in motorbike robbery operations in Kigali town since July this year.
Nocturnal community security patrols in Nyarutarama caught the two dressed in military clothes after they had terrorized a motor cyclist with a toy pistol and taken away his motorcycle.
"My conscience is tormenting and I am scared I am begging all authorities and all of those that I offended to pardon me," Mukashema said as she confessed her crime.
She said that her job was to take a motorbike during evening hours from areas in town as an ordinary passenger that would take her up to places where both Nsabimana and his boss, Gad Cyuma would terrorize the rider and take away his motorcycle.
The arrested said that Cyuma, a man who is said by Remera police agents to be an army deserter and demobilized from Rwanda Defense Forces (RDF), was selling the robbed motorcycles in Burundi at low prices.
Nsabimana said that Cyuma gave him military clothes and a toy pistol that he used to terrorize a motor rider who was carrying Mukeshimana near King Faisal Hospital last Sunday before the latter jumped onto the bike and sped away with it.
Police caught it later in Nyarutarama but couldn't arrest Cyuma who had vanished.
Police Spokesman, Inspector Willy Marcel Higiro said that the robbers were caught with the help of community policing members because the residents themselves tracked the thieves before they called police for help.
"This is fully a community policing achievement we always tell the people to send information to police as soon as possible," he said, explaining that police was happy to once again trace motorbike robbery channels in the country.
He said that Rwanda National Police reduced cases of motorbike theft in Rwanda and it was going to connect with Interpol police to trace motorbikes stolen in Rwanda that were sold in Burundi so that they are returned.
Higiro said that Nsabimana and Mukashema would be taken to the Gasabo prosecution offices the same day (yesterday).
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