Five people living in the UK are being investigated by police after a referral from Rwanda over allegations relating to the genocide 25 years ago.

An estimated 800,000 Rwandans died in 100 days of slaughter and ethnic cleansing between April and July 1994.

Members of the majority Hutu population went on the rampage, murdering Tutsis and those who tried to protect them.

Image: July 03, 1994: Rwandan Hutus welcome a French Marines detachment as they drive through a refugee camp

Most of those who died were Tutsis, but the victims included some moderate Hutus.

A Metropolitan Police spokeswoman confirmed the force's war crimes unit, part of the counter-terrorism command, received a referral from Rwandan authorities in January 2018.


It related to five individuals in the UK and allegations of genocide offences in Rwanda dating from around 1994, she said in a statement.

"Relevant documentation to this was assessed by the war crimes unit and officers were also deployed to Rwanda as part of our initial work to scope the allegations," the spokeswoman added.

"As a result, we have subsequently commenced an investigation which will initially involve a review of all the documentation transferred from Rwanda.

"Given the complexities involved, this is expected to be a protracted and lengthy process. Inquiries continue."

Image: Skulls and personal items of victims of the Rwandan genocide

The Daily Mirror reported that the suspects are Celestin Mutabaruka, 63, from Kent; Vincent Brown, also known as Vincent Bajinya, 59, from Islington, north London; Celestin Ugirashebuja, 66, from Essex; Charles Munyaneza, 61, from Bedford; and Emmanuel Nteziryayo, from Manchester.

All five deny the allegations against them and involvement in the genocide.

In July 2017 five men with the same names, all of Hutu ethnicity, had an extradition bid to have them returned to Rwanda blocked by the UK High Court.

Image: Rwandan President Paul Kagame (C), and his wife Jeannette at a commemoration of the 1994 genocide in the capital Kigali

At the time judges agreed there was a real risk they would be denied a fair trial if they were returned.

On Sunday, thousands in Rwanda and around the world marked the 25th anniversary of the genocide, one of the worst since the Second World War.