Tea Topuria
17-year-old Giga Elizbarashvili was found dead in his native village after one-month search. Unfortunately only his bones and torn clothes were discovered in the village. The reason of his death is still unclear.
17-year-old Giga Elizbarashvili from the village of Vachnadziant Kari in Gurjaani district disappeared in the evening of September 17, 2010. That day, he was visiting his uncle who had vintage. After the vintage, the family organized a party for the guests. At about 10:00 pm Giga left home and did not return back; however, nobody looked for him that night – the parents thought he was at his uncle’s house and the uncle thought he had gone home. The family and relatives started to look for him only in the afternoon of September 18. Since then, the Gurjaani district police was looking for the adult for more than one month. One day, a neighbor accidentally discovered the corpse – the bones and torn clothes were scattered under the MagtiCom Mast. The corpse was handed to the family in a sealed up box and it was buried in it. Currently, the parents are waiting for the analyze results.
Tengiz Sarijashvili, a resident of the Vachnadziant Kari: “Nasko (Naskida) and I were chopping fire-wood for our neighbor when Nasko climbed up the mast. I was looking at him but the sun blared at my eye and I went round the mast to see Nasko better; suddenly I noticed trousers in the grass; it was torn. Then I saw a T-shirt and trainers. When I moved forward I saw human bones and limbs. I called people. Villagers gathered near the mast. Later, the police also arrived at the place.
There were blue jeans with a buckle on the back and white trainers on the place. Everything was dirty and torn. The bones were scattered. Maybe the beast, which ate him up, dragged the body around. We found the skull 200 meters away. The grass was too high and maybe they could not detect the corpse in it. The villagers put rubbish in the area and they did not pay attention to the bad smell. The police did not climb up the mast; they did not check blood stains on it.”
Several versions of the accident were spread in the village. According to one of the versions, Giga was climbing up the mast and he fell down off it. The investigation has not announced its conclusion yet.
Veriko Gochiashvili, the mother of Giga Elizbarashvili: “The police do not have any version; they are asking us the opinion. I know nothing. They say he could have fallen off the mast. Children used to climb there and he could also do the same. But, I exclude this possibility because my son was afraid of height and he could not climb up a tree not to speak about the mast.”
The locals said the children often climbed up the mast but it was sort of entertainment for them. But in this particular case, there were several circumstances that made the version doubtful.
1. The corpse was found on the place where it could fall only if the person had climbed till the top of the mast which is 40-meters-high.
2. Giga Elizbarashvili disappeared at 10:00 pm. If he really fell off the mast, it means he climbed up at night.
3. Although the mast is located at the end of the village, the area is not uninhabited. It is near the road and people often walk past it. They go there to chop wood. It is strange that nobody saw the corpse throughout one month when the villagers were looking for the adult everywhere including the territory near the mast.
According to one of the versions, Giga Elizbarashvili might have jumped off the mast to kill himself. But Veriko Gochiashvili said her son was not depressed at all.
Veriko Gochiashvili: “I cannot blame anybody in the murder but I am sure that Giga could not climb up the mast. How was police looking for him?! They interrogated Giga’s every friend (with whom he spent all day) in my house.”
On the day of accident, Giga spent big part of the day with his friends before going to the vintage. They even went to the cemetery of their friend. It is not excluded that the boys had some disagreement but they deny this version.
Levan Tsatsabashvili, Giga’s friend: “We were at the cemetery together with our friends; we drank beer. Nothing happened there. Giga did not have disagreement with anybody. We cannot suspect anybody. Giga did not have any problems either that could compel him to jump off the vast. He did not have a girl-friend.
“Once, Giga and I really climbed up the mast but did not reach the top. I was scared and I swore I would never climb up it next time. Giga could not have climbed up the vast alone. Even if he had done it, he had to walk some distance from his uncle’s house to the vast and people could have seen him going there. Maybe, he went there by somebody’s car and people could not see him in it.”
Before the corpse was found, the family hoped they would find Giga alive.
Veriko Gochiashvili: “Police gave hopes that children often leave homes at this age. They said if something had happened with him, we could have learned about it earlier. But I had feeling that there was something wrong with him.”
The MIA did not want to make any comments regarding the investigation activities carried out by the police. However, it is fact that the police could not find the corpse which was in the field in the village.
According to the law, the case materials are not available for the victim side either till the investigation finishes. The Human Rights Center sent an official letter to the MIA and requested all public information about the case but the Ministry did not reply to the letter. Consequently, we do not know what versions the police are working on in regard with the death of Giga Elizbarashvili.
The article was prepared within the project - Investigation of the facts of the Enforced Disappearances in Georgia with Financial Support of the Eurasian Partnership Foundation within the EU funded project - Strengthening the Media’s Role as a Watchdog Institution in Georgia.
The contents of this article report are the sole responsibility of the Human rights Centre and cannot be taken as to reflect the views of the European Union and Eurasian Partnership Foundation.
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