Two ex-high officials face new criminal charges

Georgia’s former Interior Minister Ivane (Vano) Merabishvili and former Chief Prosecutor Zurab Adeishvili are facing new criminal charges that stem back to 2004 and relate to unlawful seizure of property.

Today the Chief Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia said the duo had been involved in "systemic crime and illegal depravation of properties” and subsequently, they both faced new charges. 

According to the Chief Prosecutor’s Office Department of Investigation of Offences Committed in Legal Proceedings, the new charges against the two ex-officials dated back to 2004 – a year after former ruling party United National Movement (UNM) took office.

The Office claimed the illegal activities took place in Georgia’s western seaside Adjara region and several state bodies, banks and legal structures were involved.

The office alleged in 2004 Merabishvili and Adeishvili held a meeting in Batumi, Adjara with representatives of the National Bank of Georgia (NBG), Adjara Central Bank, Security Minister of Adjara Akaki Tsintsadze and Adjara Chief Prosecutor Givi Papuashvili.

The major focus of the meeting was the liquidation process of the Adjara Sea Bank. This was what UNM wanted as party officials believed shareholders of the bank were affiliated with former Adjara ruler Aslan Abashidze, who was forced out of the country in early 2004 by Georgia’s ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili. 

Zurab Adeishvili is said to be in Ukraine now. 

In order for the bank liquidation process to be carried out quickly, the creditors should have returned their loans promptly. Then the returned money should be transferred to special accounts offered by Adeishvili and Merabishvili so the former shareholders did not have any access to it,” Georgia’s Chief Prosecutor’s Office claimed. 

As the liquidation process continued, former state officials and relevant agencies drafted a list of creditors and forced them to return the money despite the fact the clients had years to repay their bank loans. If the clients had no money they were forced to give up their property to the state, alleged the Office in its statement.

Among the victims were Teimuraz Megrelishvili and Nodar Modebadze, who had taken a two million GEL loan from the Adjara Sea Bank to establish a vineyard and winery. 

The men were forced by people under the instruction of Adeishvili and Merabishvili to repay their loan in two months.

As they failed to do so and were threatened by the officials, they gifted the vinery to the state. The law-enforcement agents woke up a notary late at night on September 7, 2004 to confirm the deal,” the Prosecutor’s Office said. 

The Office has already sent relevant documentation to the Ministry of Economy for the victims of the crime to have their unlawfully confiscated property returned to them.

The two former officials Adeishvili and Merabishvili now face a three to five year prison term if found guilty.

Merabishvili is currently incarcerated for other charges while Adeishvili, believed to be in Ukraine, is wanted by Georgia’s law-enforcement bodies for alleged illegalities committed while in office.