Three charged with appropriating state funds in state aid for farmers

The Investigation Service of Georgia’s Finance Ministry on Wednesday said it had charged three individuals with appropriation of state financial support by forging documents on handing agricultural products to farmers as part of a state programme.

The body said the individuals, who worked as entrepreneurs in the western Georgian region of Samegrelo, had been expected to provide farmers who received state support package on their “agro cards” with products for agriculture.

Instead, the offenders only provided between 70 and 80 percent of the value of the points on farmers’ cards to them, while forging documents to falsely indicate full value being handed over.

The documents were used to receive the value of the supposedly provided products from the state under the latter’s programme for the farmers.

The Service said efforts were underway to identify other persons involved in the offence, and added the crime was punishable by two to four years in prison.