A medical doctor accused of multiple offences linked to the 1994 Rwanda genocide is expected to face trial in the autumn of 2027. Dr Vincent Brown, previously known as Dr Vincent Bajinya, is the first individual in the United Kingdom to face charges in connection with the genocide.
The 65-year-old resident of Islington, north London, is charged with one count of conduct ancillary to genocide alongside six offences of conduct ancillary to murder as a crime against humanity. He is accused of killing, directing, or encouraging the deaths of members of the Tutsi ethnic group.
During a pre-trial hearing at the Old Bailey, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb scheduled a provisional eight to 12-week trial to begin on October 4, 2027. The defendant appeared via video link from Belmarsh prison, having indicated that he will plead not guilty to the allegations. A plea and case management hearing has been scheduled for January 15.
The court was informed that a £100,000 bail condition established earlier in October had not yet been fulfilled. Prosecutor Bill Emlyn Jones KC described the events of 1994 as one of the most devastating waves of mass killing in modern history, noting that an estimated 800,000 Tutsis and politically moderate Hutus were killed during the 100-day genocide.
Brown qualified as a medical doctor in Rwanda during the 1980s and later served as the head of the country's Department of Family Health in Kigali. He is alleged to have acted as a leader or supervisor of violent acts carried out by others between April 6 and 13, 1994, leading to charges following a seven-year British investigation.