Authorities in Italy have taken a 50-year-old man from Burundi into custody in connection with the brutal killings of three Italian Catholic missionary nuns that occurred over a decade ago in Africa’s Burundi.
Guillaume Harushimana faces allegations of planning, organizing, and providing logistical assistance for the deaths of three elderly nuns: 83-year-old Olga Rachietti, 75-year-old Lucia Pulici, and 79-year-old Bernadetta Boggian. The religious women were killed in two separate incidents that took place on September 7-8, 2014, in Bujumbura, Burundi’s largest commercial city.
According to prosecutors in Parma, Italy, the murders were directed by General Adolphe Nshimirimana, who served as the head of Burundi’s secret police at the time. The general was later killed in 2015. Harushimana allegedly served as one of the general’s assistants and carried out the deadly orders.
Investigators believe the nuns may have been targeted for several possible reasons: their refusal to offer medical assistance to Burundian militia forces operating in Congo, disagreements regarding funding for a youth facility in the Kamenge area, or as part of some form of ritual killing.
Four individuals are believed to have directly participated in the murders, according to prosecutors. Two suspects admitted their involvement during radio broadcasts, while a third person, described as the general’s personal security guard, was questioned in Parma and partially acknowledged the crimes. A fourth suspect remains unidentified.
Burundian officials have not yet provided any response to requests for comment regarding the arrest. Attempts to reach Harushimana for his statement were unsuccessful.
Italian legal authorities revealed they had resumed their investigation into these murders during 2024, following new information discovered in a book written by investigative reporter Giusy Baioni. This led them to interview additional nuns who had never been questioned by Burundian investigators.
Harushimana’s connection to the case had previously surfaced during earlier investigations. He had secured permission to travel to Italy in 2018 for educational training in the northern Italian city of Parma.
During that 2018 visit, he was brought in for questioning by authorities in Parma but maintained his innocence. He insisted he was not in Burundi when the murders occurred and presented passport documentation showing he had left the country as proof of his absence during the killings.
