Upon the overthrow of the Derg, Kinfe served as Chief of Security and Immigration in the new government and became a right-hand man of Meles Zenawi.

He was murdered in 2001 by a fellow officer, which resulted in one of the most high-profile criminal cases in Ethiopian history.

[2] In May 2001, Kinfe walked into an Officer's club in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.

Major Tsehaye's motive was unknown, but it was speculated that it was due to a dispute between former members of the TPLF, with some dissatisfied over the outcome of the recent war with Eritrea.

Alternatively, Paulos Milkias has suggested the motive may have been linked to internal politics: in the weeks before his assassination Kinfe had removed opponents of Zenawi from the Armed Forces and from opposition groups, with some killed and others forcibly 'disappeared'.