Prisoner Was Beaten in Gldani Detention Setting

Convicted Daniel Denisevich was beaten by prison supervisors in Gldani prison №8. This information is confirmed by the lawyers of the Human Rights Centre Eka Kobesahivili, who herself visited the prisoner on January 25.

“Prisoner had bruises on his forehead and eyes. Supervisors had no concrete ground to beat him. Initially he was insulted and when he asked the reason he was beaten. The prisoner did not want to complain about the incident but I explained to him that it was necessary to react on similar facts,” said Eka Kobesashvili.

Tbilisi City Court found him guilty under Article 260 Part II - “a” and “e” and article 273 of the Criminal Code of Georgia. He is accused for drug-addiction and illegal purchase-storage of narcotic substances.

On December 7, 2009 Tbilisi City Court sentenced him to 9-year-imprisonment. On November 20, 2009 according to Article 1.3 of Georgian Law on Amnesty, Daniel Denisevich was discharged from one year of imprisonment for the crime committed under Article 273 of the Criminal Code and finally his sentence is 8 years and 6 months. The sentence is now appealed at the Appeal Court.

According to the attorney, this is not a first fact of physical assault on prisoners. Similar facts have occurred before.

The lawyer of the Human Rights Centre appeals to the Public Defender’s office for help. Monitoring group of the Ombudsman’s office will study the situation in prison in order to react on it properly. The Human Rights Centre will inform international organizations about the incident.

Tako Khutsishvili