Family of ‘Hotel Rwanda’ hero Paul Rusesabagina files a $400 million lawsuit for allegedly kidnapping and torturing him | World News
The family of a former hotel manager who was portrayed as a hero in a Hollywood film about the 1994 Rwandan genocide has filed a $400 million lawsuit over his alleged kidnapping and torture.
Paul Rusesabagina, who was played by American actor Don Cheadle in the Oscar-nominated film Hotel Rwanda, is credited with saving hundreds of Tutsis from being killed.
The killings ended when the Tutsi rebels, currently led by President Paul Kagame, gained control and caused the exodus of more than two million Hutus.
Last year, this 67-year-old man received a Sentenced to 25 years in prison for terrorism after a trial, which his supporters claimed was unusual.
His family claimed in their lawsuit that the Rwandan government used “their agents to trick him” into returning to Rwanda from the US, where he had lived in exile.
President Kagame’s security agents then “forcibly abducted him, tortured him and illegally sent him to prison,” the lawsuit, which was seen by Sky News, states.
Rusesabagina is known as a prominent critic of President Kagame, whose family says why he was “followed, harassed and ultimately kidnapped”.
The lawsuit, filed in a Washington court on February 22, names the Rwandan government, President Paul Kagame, and other figures including the former justice minister and intelligence chief.
Rusesabagina received a 25-year prison sentence for terrorism
It is seeking at least $400 million (£307.2 million) in compensation as well as compensatory damages.
A press conference is expected to be held by Rusesabagina’s family and lawyers on Wednesday, where more details about the lawsuit are expected to be released.
The Rwandan government has yet to comment publicly on the statements.
Rusesabagina has received numerous awards for her work, including the US Presidential Medal of Freedom from George Bush in 2005.
US President Bush presents Rusesabagina with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005
In September, he was found guilty of being involved in a group of rebels allegedly responsible for deadly gun, grenade and arson attacks in Rwanda in 2018 and 2019.
His sentence was upheld by Rwanda’s Court of Appeal earlier this month, a ruling his family described as a death sentence.
