What criminal charges are filed against recently extradited former UNM official Kardava?
Megis Kardava was arrested in Ukraine on September 11 and was extradited to Georgia earlier today. Photo: IPN.
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A total of 11 criminal charges are filed against the former head of Georgia’s military police under the United National Movement (UNM) government Megis Kardava who was extradited from Ukraine to Georgia earlier today after 10 years of being on the run.
Megis Kardava has been convicted in five criminal cases while six other criminal cases are still being heard in Tbilisi City Court.
Kardava has been found guilty in the following cases:
- The case of torture and abuse of convicted prisoners. He was found guilty in 2014 and was sentenced to nine years imprisonment.
- The case of a special operation near Navtlugi bus terminal in Tbilisi in January 2006 where three Georgian citizens were shot dead. He was sentenced to seven years and six months imprisonment.
- The case of the prison riot ‘for degrading and inhuman treatment of prisoners.’ He was sentenced to six years and nine months of imprisonment.
- The case of Georgian colonel Sergo Tetradze who died as a result of ‘torture and violence of a sexual nature’ by former officials including Megis Kardava. He was sentenced to nine years imprisonment.
- The so-called case of barrels where Kardava was found guilty for ‘acts of sexual violence, unlawful deprivation of liberty and torture.’ He was sentenced to nine years of imprisonment for this case.
The cases which are currently being heard in Tbilisi City Court are as followed:
- Two cases of torture and physical and moral abuse of prisoners
- The case of torture of a detained woman. “Taking advantage of his official position, he beat and humiliated an arrested woman in an inhuman, degrading manner and inflicted moral suffering on her,” the Georgian Chief Prosecutor’s Office states
- The case of ‘Intentional homicide committed by a group and by order.’
- Two cases of the embezzlement of state funds of 828,000 GEL
Kardava has been wanted by Georgian law enforcers since 2013. He was also wanted by Interpol.
Kardava was detained back in 2017 in Ukraine for illegally entering the country from Romania after which the Georgian government demanded his extradition.
Ukraine replaced Megis Kardava's extradition detention with house arrest in December 2018.
The Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia has thanked its Ukrainian counterparts for ‘successful cooperation’ regarding Kardavas recent extradition to Georgia.
Former head of Georgia’s military police under the United National Movement (UNM) government Megis Kardava has been extradited from Ukraine to Georgia earlier today. Kardava is charged with abuse of authority, torture, sexual abuse and illegal imprisonment and has been wanted by Georgian law enforcers since 2013 for 11 criminal cases.
Ukrainian judge Vitaliy Pisanets, who gave the green light for the extradition of former Georgian military official under the United National Movement (UNM) Megis Kardava last week, was found dead in his house, outside Kyiv, on Saturday. The next trial in Kardava's extradition case was scheduled for later today. Kardava, who is charged with abuse of authority, torture, sexual abuse and illegal imprisonment, stated last week that his extradition from Ukraine is related to the Ocrober 2 municipal elections.
The extradition of the former head of the Georgian military police under the United National Movement government Megis Kardava from Ukraine has been delayed as the latter has asked Ukraine for political asylum.
Ukraine’s Security Service has announced procedures have been launched to extradite Georgia’s former head of the military police Megis Kardava to Georgia.
Former Georgian Defense Ministry senior official Megis Kardava, who has been accused of torture and prisoner abuse by Georgia's judiciary, has been detained in Ukraine.
Two former Georgian law-enforcement officers have been arrested and charged with murder.
Three former Government Interior Ministry senior officials face new torture charges. Former Interior Ministry senior official Megis Kardava and ex-deputy Chief of Department of Corrections Gaga Mkurnalidze are accused of torturing prisoners in order to gain a confession on a terrorist act.
Today in Tbilisi City Court, Kardava was sentenced to nine years imprisonment for torturing Davit Londaridze in 2011 and forcing him to confess to espionage. Once he is released, Kardava will not be allowed to fill a post for two years.
The Georgian Chief Prosecutor's Office released a video earlier today which shows the torture of a prisoner in 2011 by former prison officials, including the former head of Georgia’s military police under the United National Movement (UNM) government, Megis Kardava, who is currently serving out a sentence.