The prosecution has asked Muhanga Primary Court to sentence Jean Pierre Ndababonye, better known by his stage name Nyakazehe, to two years in prison for the involuntary murder of 10 children between the ages of 9 and 13.
While traveling to Ndaro Sector, Ngororero District of Western Province, the children perished in River Nyabarongo.
13 kids aged between 9 and 13 are said to have been involved in the incident, which occurred in the evening of July 17. They boarded a boat owned by one Ndababonye Jean Pierre 41.
The latter wanted the kids to assist him in packing as he set sail for the opposite coast to bring tiles for his home. The adult and three passengers made got out alive.
The prosecution alleges that Ndababonye removed the kids without their parents’ permission and put them on a boat that was unsafe for travel and was missing safety equipment.
Additionally, the prosecution claimed that Ndababonye overloaded the boat by loading 13 passengers when it was only designed to hold five.
The prosecution asked the court to condemn Ndababonye to two years in prison after claiming that he had broken the labor code, which forbids children under the age of 18 from working.
Ndababonye, on the other hand, entered a plea of guilty and expressed regret in front of the judge and the relatives of the deceased who were present at the hearing at the scene of the murder.
The prosecution argued that he should be punished and sent to jail to serve the sentence, despite his plea for a suspended sentence.
The case will be decided by the court on August 15.
