Ethiopia Charges 14 Over Suspect Ship-Buying at Key Conglomerate

Jan 14 2019, 7:08 PMJan 15 2019, 5:32 AMJanuary 14 2019, 7:08 PMJanuary 15 2019, 5:32 AM

(Bloomberg) -- Ethiopian police charged 14 former employees of Metal & Engineering Corp., a key military-industrial conglomerate, with alleged corruption related to the purchases of two ships.

The ex-MeTEC employees were charged Monday at the Federal High Court, accused of playing roles in the misuse of more than 544 million birr ($19.1 million), Fana Broadcasting Corp. reported, citing proceedings.

MeTEC, a corporation once run by retired military personnel, had until recently played a crucial role in projects to develop Africa’s fastest-growing economy. After Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed took office in April some of its contracts were canceled, while dozens of people were arrested two months ago in a probe into suspected corruption.

The case was adjourned until Jan. 28 to receive arguments from the defense.