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Three members of criminal underworld arrested in Georgia in agreement with Europol

Dimitri Chrelashvili, Givi Begiashvili and Kakha Bezhitashvili were cooperating with the criminal underworld, investigators said.
Agenda.ge, 20 Apr 2018 - 12:23, Tbilisi,Georgia

Three members of the "criminal underworld” arrested by Georgian police in Tbilisi and in the Kakheti region on April 19 had been actively working with so called "thieves-in-law” recently arrested in Europe, Georgia’s Ministry of Internal affairs says. 

The arrests come in the wake of the capture of four Georgian criminal bosses and 34 Georgian members of criminal groups in France and Greece on April 16-17 through cooperation with the Georgian Interior Ministry.

Georgian legislation defines a ‘thief-in-law’ as a person who manages in any form and/or organises the activities of the criminal underworld or a certain group of criminal individuals. ‘Criminal discussions’ are defined as assessments and evaluations of a situation between feuding criminal groups with the aim of resolving disputes in the criminal underworld.

Dimitri Chrelashvili, Givi Begiashvili and Kakha Bezhitashvili were cooperating with the criminal underworld, investigators said. The investigation found that the three people managed a "criminal discussion” for one person and demanded 60,000 GEL for their services, threatening to injure his family members and damage his property should he fail to pay up. The crime committed by them is punishable by five to eight years of imprisonment. 

"They recognize the so called "criminal underworld”, were actively involved in "criminal discussions” and had been in communication with ‘thieves-in-law’ – Malkhaz Zedelashvili, Kakha Shavliashvili, Abesalom Papiashvili and Giorgi Khatiashvili in Europe,” Mamuka Chelidze, Head of the division of combating organised crimes at the Interior Ministry said. 

Amendments to a law on combating organised crime and racketeering was passed by the Georgian parliament on April 19. The new law specifies definitions of the terms: "criminal underworld”, "member of the criminal underworld”, "thieves-in-law”, and "criminal discussion” and also established a sentence the crime of associating and cooperating with the "criminal underworld”.