Georgia Hands Down Sentences for Khabeishvili and Zodelava

The Tbilisi City Court has decided on preventive measures for two opposition representatives.

The Chairman of the Political Council of the National Movement, Levan Khabeishvili, has been sent to prison. According to investigators, he promised officials rewards for illegal actions and calls to overthrow the government. His lawyers asked the court to limit himself to bail, house arrest, or the use of an electronic bracelet, but the petition was rejected. Now Khabeishvili will be sent to Rustavi Penitentiary Institution No. 12.

As for opposition politician Murtaza Zodelava, who was previously detained for obstructing the investigation, the court set bail for him at 25,000 lari. After posting it, Zodelava will be released. The defense insisted that no preventive measure should be applied to him.

Recall that on September 13, the Prosecutor General's Office of Georgia accused former Defense Minister Juansher Burchuladze of abuse of office and legalization of illegal income. The agency is preparing an appeal to the court demanding that he be taken into custody.

The third and fifth presidents of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili and Salome Zurabishvili, harshly condemned the series of detentions and considered them "shameful."