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Judge Sentenced Luka Ramazashvili to Eight-Years Imprisonment

November 6, 2006

ramazasvili.gifOn October 26, Judge Leila Otarashvili at Telavi District Court sentenced Luka Ramazashvili to eight years in prison. The defendant is one of the founders of the 'Kazbegi' Company and head of the Kakheti branch of the 'Mretsvelebi' political party.

 

On January 30, 2006, Kakheti Regional Prosecutor's Office detained Luka Ramazashvili, chairman of the Kakheti Veterans Department and former commander of a non-governmental police force. He received the Gorgasali reward.

Prosecutor's Office accused him of trespass, false imprisonment, extortion, theft, assault, and coercion.

Despite many charges, Luka Ramazashvili is considered to be a political criminal because of the tense relationship between him and the Telavi temporary Governor Gocha Mamatsashvili. Leader of the 'Mretsvelebi' party, Gogi Tofadze, openly blamed Mamatsashvili for the dispute.

'The only reason of Ramazashvili's detention is that present authority in Telavi does not like an independent businessman. It is obvious that Gocha Mamatsashvili and his group do not want the starting up of the lumber company. [Mamatashvili and his group] want to export the wood aboard illegally," stated Mr. Tofadze.

Mamatsashvili did not comment when we contacted him several times.

During a four-month court hearing, most witnesses contradicted their earlier statements that they had made during the investigation. Some of them remarked at the trail that during the investigation they had been coerced by the prosecutor and investigators. "The statements I gave during the investigation are fraudulent, since I had no dealings or conflicts with Luka Ramazashvili. Moreover, I have not read the statements which were signed by me," stated Musradin Nabi Oghli.

"Ramazashvili has not threatened or insulted us. I gave a different statement to the investigator since I did not know what to do. I cannot speak Georgian well. I had no interpreter and I simply repeated what they were telling me," stated witness Ivanhoe Tsikaradze. The latter together with other witnesses, Besarion Kitidze and Arsen Pavliashvili, were sentenced to pre-trial detention for perjury.

"Almost every trail of evidence proved the charge against Luka Ramazashvili was fraudulent. Statements of witnesses were changed. Thus, investigator and prosecutor Davit Nekerauli is the one who should be charged in this case. Witnesses stated that they had signed strange documents, and some of them said that they were forced to sign initial testimony. The charge against my client is spurious. Detention of these people is unreasonable since the Prosecutor's Office coerced them," stated Shalva Shavgulidze, Luka Ramazashvili’s lawyer.

Coercion of the witnesses is confirmed by Nana Chabukadze, lawyer for non-governmental organization 'Human Rights Information and Documentation Centre' who was monitoring court hearing with the support of Human Resources Office-OSCE Mission in Georgia. "Since the three people have been detained, others have refused to give statements. Most of them are so afraid that they cannot remember what and how things happened. In general, the Prosecutor's coercion of the witnesses was evident," stated Nana Chabukadze.

Tamaz Tsabutashvili, Kakheti Regional Prosecutor, denies he coerced the witnesses. "Luka Ramazashvili is a criminal, and he should have no dealings in business and politics. He uses these as a shield [for his illegal enterprises]. He was a leader of armed gang which was pillaging people. Besides the charges, he had forced two businessmen, one of them Bukaraidze, to flee Georgia… We worked hard to assemble the charges against him. We have not coerced witnesses," stated Tamaz Tsabutashvili.

Kakheti Regional Prosecutor's Office asked for a twelve-year prison sentence for Luka Ramazashvili. Judge Lia Otarashvili dropped three charges out of six and finally sentenced him to eight years in prison. Lawyers [for Ramazashvili] will soon appeal the verdict before Tbilisi Appeal Court. If they are unsuccessful there, they will appeal to the European Court of Human Rights for relief.

Gela Mticlishvili, Kakheti

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