Judges at the Regional Supreme Court in Bahir Dar rejected the preliminary objections of Tadesse Kassa, former CEO, and Bereket Simon, former board chairperson, of Tiret Corporate. The two defendants, charged with four counts of high crimes of corruption, were arrested in late January suspected of allegedly misusing and squandering public treasure from five subsidiaries and two wings of the company. In their objections, the defendants argued that the court does not have jurisdiction over their case and that the crimes stated in the charges were alleged to have been committed before the legislation of the anti-corruption proclamation. Rejecting the defendants’ objection, the court ruled that it has a jurisdiction to preside over the case. It also stated that the alleged crime continued even after the legislation of the proclamation that was enacted in 2015. During the same session, Bereket and the third co-defendant, Daniel Gizaw, pleaded not guilty, while Tadesse requested a time extension to submit a plea. Accepting Tadesse’s plea, the court adjourned the case to May 13, 2019.
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