Burundi Police arrest three over minister's murder

Burundi police force has arrested three suspects in the assassination of a lawyer and a former minister, Hafsa Mossi murdered on July 13.

Police spokesperson Pierre Nkurikiye said information about the killing of Mossi was received after a police search operation conducted on Thursday.

“On Thursday, security agents arrested three suspects involved in the killing of Hafsa Mossi assassinated in the Burundian capital Bujumbura on July 13. Those persons were arrested while they were preparing to kill an adviser at the Burundian president’s office;” he said.

Hafsa Mossi was shot by two unidentified gunmen at Nyankoni Avenue in the north of Bujumbura, near her home.

She was driving along Nyankoni Avenue when she was ambushed by gunmen.

The Burundi lawyer who later died in the hospital, occupied several high posts in government and at the president’s office.

In 2005, she was appointed as the spokeswoman for Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza, then served as Burundi’s minister for information and East African Community (EAC) affairs before joining the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) in June 2012 as a lawmaker for Burundi.