Tom Byabagamba, 59, the former chief of Rwanda’s presidential guard and once President Paul Kagame’s personal bodyguard, has died while serving a prison sentence.
Byabagamba was arrested in 2014 alongside his brother-in-law, retired Brigadier-General Frank Rusagara. Both were charged with “spreading rumours” and “tarnishing the image of the country and government.”
Throughout the case, Byabagamba denied the charges, calling them fabricated. Rights organizations raised concerns at the time, saying the arrests fit a wider pattern of government pressure on critics.
In 2016 a military court sentenced Byabagamba to 21 years. An appeal later reduced the term to 15 years. Rusagara, who had also served as secretary-general in the defence ministry, received a 20-year sentence. Rusagara died in prison in March 2025. Human Rights Watch said at the time that his family had not heard from him since 2014 and that authorities told them he had been ill with cancer.
Byabagamba’s brother, David Himbara, told the BBC’s Great Lakes service that the family was not told the cause of death. “No-one was allowed to see him in all these years,” he said.
HRW and the campaign group Freedom Now had both criticized the trial. HRW called it “flawed” and cited “serious allegations of torture and witness tampering.” Freedom Now described the detention as “arbitrary” and said it violated international law.
Rights groups continue to accuse the Rwandan government of restricting political opposition and silencing dissent both inside Rwanda and abroad.
Byabagamba is survived by his wife and two sons.
