Félicien Kabuga, once described as one of Rwanda’s wealthiest men, died on May 16, 2026, in a hospital in The Hague while under UN custody, ending one of the longest manhunts in international justice without a final verdict.
Born March 1, 1933 in Mugina , Gicumbi District, Kabuga built his fortune through tea plantations in northern Rwanda, import-export businesses and real estate. He was closely connected to President Juvénal Habyarimana’s MRND party and the Akazu circle.
Prosecutors at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda accused him of being the primary financier of Hutu extremist media, including RTLM radio and Kangura magazine, and of importing 500,000 machetes between January 1993 and March 1994.
After 26 years as a fugitive, he was arrested on May 16, 2020 in Greater Paris at age 87 by French police. He was transferred to The Hague on October 26, 2020. His trial began September 29, 2022, but was halted in June 2023 after judges declared him unfit to stand trial due to severe dementia.
His death has left survivors without closure. Ibuka said: “To say he is unfit to stand trial is to tell survivors that their pain does not matter.”
What Next – Assets:
A new chapter is opening. A civil case seeking compensation for survivors over Kabuga’s estate is set to be heard in November 2026 by Gasabo Intermediate Court in Kigali. IBUKA initiated the case before his death. Assets frozen in France, Belgium, Kenya and Switzerland could be targeted for civil recovery, even without a criminal conviction.
He was buried privately in Waterloo, Belgium, south of Brussels, in a family vault – no cameras, no public ceremony – for a man who was once the world’s most wanted.
For many, his story remains a lesson: wealth bought 26 years of freedom, but not a verdict.
By East African Report | October 29, 2026
