Kelbessa Negewo

Kelbessa Negewo (born 1950) is an Ethiopian man who served as an official of the Marxist Derg regime while it was in power. He oversaw the torture and murder of political opponents during the Red Terror; Kelbessa denies a role in the torture that occurred. After the fall of the Derg regime, Kelbessa moved to the United States and later gained US citizenship. In Ethiopia, he was tried and convicted in absentia, and sentenced to life imprisonment. He was later deported to Ethiopia, where he is currently serving his sentence.

Life in Ethiopia Kelbessa was born in western Ethiopia in 1950, where his family raised goats. Kelbessa claims he was awarded a scholarship to study in the United States, but a government official in Emperor Haile Selassie's regime had his own nephew sent instead in Kelbessa's place.

Kelbessa later married and had three children, later divorcing. When the emperor was overthrown and the Derg seized power, Kelbessa became part of a neighborhood council which was tasked with seeing to revolutionary changes in the country. He eventually progressed to the status of chairman of Higher Zone 9, one of Addis Ababa's 25 zones, where he oversaw multiple councils and was involved in recruiting members of armed "revolutionary defense squads". Kelbessa was brought to trial in the US again, and voluntarily gave up his American citizenship.