Border guard who shot, killed Georgian man near Abkhazia ABL identified
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Georgian authorities have uncovered the identity of the border guard who shot and killed a Georgian man near the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) separating de facto Abkhazia region from the rest of Georgia.
Several investigations have launched into the brutal murder of 31-year-old Giga Otkhozoria, who was shot six times by Russia’s border guards while he was on Georgian-controlled territory near the ABL.
Late last night Georgia’s Chief Prosecutor Irakli Shotadze announced the person who committed the murder had been identified.
He added Georgia’s Interior Ministry was investigating the case and further information would release in the coming days.
Meanwhile the Prosecutor General's Office of de facto Abkhazia has also launched a criminal investigation into the death of the Georgian man, reported Russian news agency Tass.
De facto Prosecutor General Alexei Lomaia told journalists that investigators must determine what really happened and whether the Abkhazian border guards’ behavior was in compliance with military disciplinary regulations.
The Abkhaz side alleged that two [Georgian] men tried to cross the so-called border without documents on May 19. After the Abkhazian border guards warned the men, one retreated while the other man, [the victim], was believed to be under the influence of alcohol and allegedly threatened the guards that he would use physical force against them.
"The border guard fired warning shots at first and when the attacker threatened [violence], the guard was forced to use a gun," Lomaia said.
Border guards run away after shooting victim (VIDEO)
A graphic video filmed the moment Otkhozoria was gunned down by several border guards.
The extremely disturbing video, filmed by CCTV cameras from the Georgian side, spread throughout Georgian media last night.
The video showed Otkhozoria standing on Tbilisi-controlled area while several guards from the de facto region crossed the bridge from the border station and approach the victim. One of the guards shot him several times in the body.
The same guard moved closer and shot the victim in the face as he lay wounded on the ground.
Moments later the border guards hastily ran away from the scene.
There were many civilians in the area at the time of the shooting. Video footage showed the public refrain from getting involved in the confrontation between the border guards and the victim, and when the shots were fired, many of the public quickly retreated.
Once the guards were away from the scene, several people approached the fallen man.
Georgia’s Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze said nothing could ease the pain facing Otkhozoria’s family but the Georgian side who do its best to give the proper judicial assessment to this "disgusting fact”.
He promised all offenders would be punished.
Georgia’s two highest officials have spoken out about the killing of a Georgian man near the de facto Abkhazia; with one saying his death was "merciless” and the other saying it was unacceptable barbed wire fences were installed on Georgian territory.
Russia has denied any involvement in the brutal murder of a Georgian man near the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) separating de facto Abkhazia region from the rest of Georgia.
A Georgian citizen has been shot six times and killed by Russia's border guards patrolling the area between Georgia and breakaway Abkhazia region.
The United States (US) has condemned the brutal murder of a Georgian man near the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) separating de facto Abkhazia region from the rest of Georgia.
Georgian law authorities have asked the court to impose pre-trial detention in absentia for the border guard who shot and killed a Georgian man near the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) separating de facto Abkhazia region from the rest of Georgia on May 19.
Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili has today travelled to western Georgia’s Samegrelo region to personally grieve with the family of a young Georgian man who was killed near the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) separating de facto Abkhazia region from the rest of Georgia on May 19.
Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili says Russia is "fully responsible” for the "brutal and disgusting” murder of a Georgian man who was shot and killed by Russian-controlled border guards at the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) separating occupied Abkhazia from rest of Georgia.
A special meeting is taking place in occupied Abkhazia tomorrow where Georgian officials and de facto Abkhazian leadership will sit down for the first time in four years and discuss conflict issues, including the murder of a Georgian man near the Abkhazian Administrative Boundary Line (ABL).
Georgia is demanding a Russian-controlled border guard who shot and killed a Georgian man near the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) separating de facto Abkhazia and rest of Georgia to face a Georgian court of law and be punished for his actions.
Almost three weeks has passed since a Georgian man was gunned down near the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) separating de facto Abkhazia and rest of Georgia but the border guard who fired the fatal shots has not been apprehended.
UPDATED: 5.10pm
The Military Court operating in Georgia’s de facto Abkhazia region has imposed a sentence of home detention on the border guard who shot and killed 31-year-old Georgian man Giga Otkhozoria on May 19.
Minister Paata Zakareishvili told media that Georgia asked the de facto Abkhazian authorities to hand the border guard over to Georgia to be tried for his crime however the de facto side refused this request.
De facto Abkhazia is still refusing to transfer the border guard who brutally killed a Georgian citizen near the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) to the Georgian side to face charges.
Late yesterday Russian occupant forces kidnapped two Georgian citizens from a village under Georgia control that’s located near the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) separating western de facto Abkhazia region from the rest of Georgia.
Georgia’s Young Lawyers’ Association (GYLA) and partner organization European Human Rights Advocacy Centre (EHRAC) have filed a lawsuit against Russia in the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), over a high profile murder case committed by a Russian-controlled border guard in 2016.