The Rwanda Correctional Service (RCS) has announced the death of former university lecturer and commentator Aimable Karasira Uzaramba, popularly known as “Prof Nigga,” just hours before he was due to be released from prison after completing his sentence.
According to RCS spokesperson Hillary Sengabo, Karasira reportedly died after taking an excessive amount of medication that had been prescribed for his mental health condition. Authorities say the incident occurred on Wednesday while final administrative procedures for his release were underway at the correctional facility.
Sengabo explained that the medication was normally used to help Karasira sleep for several hours, but preliminary findings suggest he consumed a much larger quantity than prescribed.
“He usually took the medicine to help him sleep for about six hours, but this time he appears to have taken it in excessive amounts in what is believed to have been a suicide attempt,” Sengabo said, according to local reports. “He was rushed to Nyarugenge Hospital, but doctors were unable to save him.”
RCS said Karasira died during the night, only a few hours before his scheduled release from detention.
Authorities noted that an official medical report is still pending to determine the exact cause of death, although preliminary information provided by prison officials points to a fatal overdose linked to the medication he consumed.
According to the RCS spokesperson, all legal and administrative procedures required for Karasira’s release had already been completed.
Officials said only final security checks and release formalities remained before he unexpectedly fell ill.
Aimable Karasira had been serving a five-year prison sentence after being convicted in 2025 on charges related to inciting divisionism. The verdict was delivered by the High Court Chamber for International and Cross-Border Crimes sitting in Nyanza.
Karasira, a former lecturer at the University of Rwanda and a well-known YouTube commentator, was arrested in 2021 over online statements that prosecutors said promoted divisionism and genocide-related offenses. During the trial, he also faced accusations including genocide denial, spreading false information, illicit enrichment, and money laundering.
The court later acquitted him on several charges, including genocide denial and justification, but found him guilty of divisionism and sentenced him to five years in prison. Prosecutors had appealed the ruling and were seeking a longer sentence, though the appeal case had not yet been concluded.
RCS stated that release decisions are implemented based on sentences recorded in the institution’s official digital system, regardless of pending appeals, meaning Karasira had legally completed the sentence he was serving.
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