The Guardian reported last month that Suedi Muekezi was arrested in Kherson.
The Guardian claims that the number of Americans captured in Ukraine by pro-Russian forces may be greater than originally thought. The newspaper reported on Wednesday that another US national has been in custody of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) since last month. The two Americans currently being held are also included in this report.
According to the report, citing the captive’s brother, Suedi Murekezi, 35, was apprehended in June in the southern Ukrainian port city of Kherson, which is currently under Russian control. Friends of his living in the city first noticed Murekezi’s disappearance on June 8, the paper claimed.
Sele Murekezi was his brother and told journalists that Suedi has been living in Kherson since 2020. He had previously moved to Ukraine two year earlier.
The detained man’s relatives insisted that he had not participated in the fighting and had been falsely accused of taking part in pro-Ukrainian protests.
The Guardian reported that Sele reached his brother last Thursday by telephone. This was the first contact since his disappearance. Suedi claimed that he was in Donetsk, a DPR prison, with two American citizens Alexander Drueke, and Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh. These men had previously reportedly served as volunteers in the Ukrainian military before their capture. However, the DPR authorities insist that Drueke, Tai Ngoc Huynh, were mercenaries, and they should be charged accordingly.
When asked for comment, the US Department of State confirmed that it was “Be aware of any reports” of Murekezi’s detention but declined to go into detail, citing “Privacy concerns”
According to The Guardian, the Guardian reached out to Russian authorities and DPR authorities as well but did not receive any response. No official statements regarding the American citizen’s arrest have been fomassnews.coming either.
Murekezi’s family was reported to have fled Rwanda after the 1994 genocide. According to the paper, he served eight years in the US Air Force before retiring in 2017. He subsequently reportedly began investing in cryptocurrencies – presumably an interest that eventually brought him to Ukraine, which was known for its liberal regulation of digital currencies.
Russian forces seized Kherson in March. This was where American residents had lived since the beginning of their lives.
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