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Dr Vincent Brown appeared before Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday where he was charged in the first UK case involving the 1994 Rwandan genocide. The 65-year-old who resides in Islington north London denies any involvement in the killings according to court reports from Reuters. He is accused of directing and inciting acts of murder and genocide carried out by others in the Rugenge district of Kigali between April 6 and 13 1994.
The Crown Prosecution Service announced the charges on September 21 2026 following a seven-year investigation by the Metropolitan Police War Crimes Team that began after a formal request from the Rwandan government. Frank Ferguson head of the CPS Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division stated that the CPS reviewed evidence from the police and concluded the legal test for prosecution had been met. Brown who worked as a doctor is alleged to have been a leader and supervisor of physical acts of violence with witnesses including former neighbors providing testimony.
According to the Metropolitan Police the offences are contrary to section 52 of the International Criminal Court Act 2001. One count alleges he engaged in conduct ancillary to genocide with intent to destroy in whole or in part the Tutsi ethnic group by encouraging killings. The six additional counts relate to specific murders including that of a young mother and her baby son as detailed in Reuters coverage of the hearing.
This case follows earlier attempts to extradite Brown to Rwanda that were blocked by UK courts in 2009 and again in 2016 over concerns he would not receive a fair trial. The Asser Institute records show that Brown and three others successfully appealed extradition on human rights grounds. He has lived in the UK since fleeing Rwanda after the genocide.
The 1994 genocide saw an estimated 800000 ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus killed over 100 days by Hutu extremists according to multiple international reports. The investigation into Brown and others focused on events in the immediate aftermath of the plane crash that killed Rwanda’s president. Commander Helen Flanagan of Counter Terrorism Policing London said the case shows the UK is not a safe haven for those suspected of international crimes.
Six other individuals remain under investigation for similar offences the Metropolitan Police indicated with two men arrested in recent years still on bail. Judge Paul Goldspring granted Brown bail with conditions including a security payment ahead of his next appearance at the Old Bailey on October 9. The development represents a significant step in holding alleged perpetrators accountable decades after the events in Rwanda.
