Noisy Judgment at Kutaisi City Court

Shorena Kakabadze, Kutaisi 

Five-year imprisonment for Vano Merabishvili and 50 000 lari fine for Zurab Tchiaberashvili – Judge Natia Barbakadze passed this judgment after ten-month court proceedings on February 17 at the Kutaisi City Court. The Court passed guilty judgment on former Minister of Interior and former regional government in criminal case. 

Convicted Vano Merabishvili was not in the courtroom; he was charged under three articles of the Criminal Code of Georgia (voters-bribery, misappropriation of state property and malicious abuse of power). The defense side clarified Merabishvili had refused to attend the session.

Kutaisi City Court found Vano Merabishvili guilty under Article 160 Part III – b of the Criminal Code of Georgia (encroachment upon inviolability of house or other possession), Article 182 Part II –d and Part III – b (misappropriation, embezzlement), also under Article 1641 of the CCG (voters bribery). As for accusation under Article 332 Part II of the CCG (abuse of official authority), court acquitted former prime-minister in it.

“Judgment made by the Kutaisi City Court is nothing more than result of direct political oppression on prosecutor’s office and judiciary. Today we saw intimidated judge and prosecutors. It is politically motivated judgment and current government is responsible for it. This day will cost too much for them. It was sort of judiciary’s contribution to the government,” a leader of the United National Movement Giga Bokeria said. He attended the trial at the Kutaisi City Court together with former mayor of Tbilisi and other members of the UNM.

“Court could not stand political oppression and we received this absolutely illegal judgment. We will argue about it to the end, because today’s judgment does not rely on factual circumstances, what we had heard beforehand. Despite all that, we expected the judge would resist the oppression but it did not happen. We heard absurd accusations and illegal judgment relied on those accusations,” Merabishvili’s lawyer Giorgi Chiviashvili said.

Accused Zurab Tchiaberashvili also spoke about political oppression on the court and prosecutor’s office; court changed qualification of the accusation against him and found him guilty into professional negligence instead abuse of official authority.

“There was nothing unexpected here. I made statements that court was under political oppression and it had result. Practically we know that court would pass similar judgment and now we are ready to continue struggle to prove our innocence. So we will appeal the judgment and finally we will win,” Tchiaberashvili said.

Prosecutor’s office also intends to appeal the judgment, which protests changed qualification of Tchiaberashvili’s charge and removal of the accusation under Article 332 Part II from Vano Merabishvili. They will appeal the judgment after they receive the court judgment. 

The defense side evaluated criminal case and final judgment against Merabishvili-Tchiaberashvili as “political revenge.” They intend to appeal the judgment at the Criminal Chamber of the Kutaisi Appeal Court within one month term.

Vano Merabishvili’s imprisonment term is counted since the day of his detention (May 21, 2013) and he still has to serve 4 years and 3 months.