Giorgi Gakharia Arrested in Absentia in Georgia

The Tbilisi City Court has ordered pretrial detention in absentia for the leader of the "Gakharia for Georgia!" party and former prime minister in the so-called "Chorchana" incident.

According to the prosecution, there is a risk that the defendant could commit a new crime, influence witnesses, or flee. The defense, for its part, pointed to the lack of evidence in the case to justify pretrial detention.

Specifically, lawyer Berdia Sichinava stated that the charges are not brought against Giorgi Gakharia, but against all of Georgia.

"What new crime can we talk about if the old one doesn't exist?" he asked.

The defense added that the case is politically motivated, as Bidzina Ivanishvili, founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party, "announced the political persecution of Gakharia on live television."

The pretrial detention measure for the second incident related to the dispersal of the June 20, 2019, protest will be decided at a court hearing today at 8:00 PM.

As a reminder, the Georgian Prosecutor's Office has opened a criminal case against Giorgi Gakharia regarding the events of June 20-21, 2019, near the parliament building in Tbilisi and the establishment of a checkpoint in the village of Chorchana.

According to Prosecutor General Giorgi Gvarakidze, Gakharia is charged with abuse of office and intentional infliction of grievous bodily harm to more than two people. According to investigators, on the night of June 21, 2019, when the protest near the parliament building escalated into clashes, the then-Minister of Internal Affairs ordered the use of special means without warning or allowing peaceful participants to leave the area. As a result, dozens of citizens were injured, two lost an eye, and five suffered grievous bodily harm.

The second incident concerns the construction of a police post near the village of Chorchana in August 2019 without the consent of the prime minister, the Security Council, the State Security Service, and the EU mission. According to the prosecutor's office, these actions provoked retaliatory measures by Tskhinvali's leaders, leading to the seizure of approximately 100 hectares of Georgian territory.

The investigation alleges that Gakharia intentionally abused his authority, thereby harming the interests of the state. He faces up to 13 years in prison. The accused is currently in a European country.

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