Georgian sentenced to 2-month pre-trial detention in breakaway Tskhinvali for crossing occupation line
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Russian-controlled guards patrolling the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL) between the occupied Tskhinvali region (South Ossetia) and the rest of Georgia have illegally detained a Georgian citizen for the third time for allegedly crossing the so-called "border”.
Genadi Bestaevi, a local of the Georgian village of Zardiantkari in the municipality of Gori, was detained on October 30, local media reported.
The man was accused of crossing the so-called border, which is an administrative boundary line separating the occupied region from the rest of Georgia, but the occupation force treats it as "state border”.
Bestaevi has been illegally detained for the same "offence” twice previously – first in August, then in September. In the previous cases, he was freed after his family paid a ransom.
Since this was the third time now, the de-facto court of the occupied region sentenced him to two-month pre-trial detention.
The Russian occupation line lies near forests, agricultural lands and pasture fields in Georgian villages. Sometimes it is hard for locals to identify where the line is so they happen to cross it from time to time. Consequently, they get arrested by Russian-controlled guards and are only freed after their families pay a ransom.
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Two Georgian citizens detained on November 3-5 by Russia-controlled border guards have been released today after they paid fines for "illegal crossing” of border.
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