All the 36 suspects of Mai Kadra massacre pleaded not guilty. In the court hearing at the Federal High Court late this week, the suspects said they knew nothing about the series of ethnic cleansing and mass murders carried out on 9–10 November 2020 in the town of Mai Kadra in the Tigray Region of northwestern Ethiopia near the Sudanese border.
The Federal Police Crime Investigation Team accused the suspects of participating in the massacre of at least 1000 civilians largely ethnic Amharas, a few days before the federal army took control of the town.
Police also charged the suspects who are referred to as gangs of the defunct Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) to ruin more than 17.6 million birr worth of properties in the town.
The investigative team told the Federal High Court that it collected as much evidence as possible depicting the extent of the property damage, backed with photos and recorded video. The team said it also gathered testimonies of 20 witnesses and other evidence of injuries of 177 people from Gondar Referral and other hospitals.
Police requested for 14 extra days to gather additional evidence against the 36 suspects including medical results of 117 corps which were recovered from mass graves in areas near the town.
Lawyers of the defendants said the police have failed to present offences of each suspect and requested the court to refuse the police extra days.
After hearing claims of both sides, the court adjourned the case for March 7, 2021.
