ADDIS ABABA — The Federal High Court issued its final ruling this afternoon regarding the bail requests of the assistant manager and spokesperson for prominent pop star Tewodros Kassahun (widely known as Teddy Afro), alongside seven other co-defendants.
After reviewing the appeal submitted by the defense lawyers, the High Court overturned a previous ruling and ordered that all detainees be released on financial bail. The bail amounts have been structured as follows:
- Mahlet Solomon (Teddy Afro’s assistant manager) and a close associate identified as Yassin (Youssuf Yasin) are required to post 100,000 ETB each.
- Two security guards employed at Teddy Afro’s private studio have been granted release upon posting 50,000 ETB each.
The high-profile associates and staff members have been held in federal police custody for nearly a month, following initial investigations that intensified after the release of Teddy Afro’s record-breaking comeback album, Etorika. The Federal First Instance Court’s Arada Division had previously extended police remand and scheduled a follow-up hearing for May 22, 2026 (ግንቦት 14 ቀን 2018 ዓ.ም), while denying bail. The defense team immediately appealed that decision to the Federal High Court, resulting in today’s bail verdict.
Despite the Federal High Court’s afternoon order to grant their release, the co-defendants had not yet been freed at the time of compiling this report.
Legal observers note that tomorrow will reveal the next procedural step: whether the Federal Police will comply with the High Court’s order and process the releases, or if prosecutors intend to appeal the bail decision to the Supreme Court.
