Parliament Speaker “astonished” to see US Ambassador “stand up for Kezerashvili” with comments
Papuashvili responded by citing the existing conviction against Kezerashvili for embezzlement of Georgian state funds during his time as the Minister between 2006-2008. Photo: Parliament of Georgia
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Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Thursday said he was “astonished” to see the United States Ambassador Kelly Degnan “stand up” for the wanted former Defence Minister David Kezerashvili with comments on allegations of the latter’s involvement in an international fraud scheme.
Papuashvili’s comments followed the statement by Degnan, who on Wednesday said Kezerashvili had denied the accusations, made in a BBC investigative report that alleged his role in the scheme that defrauded European citizens.
In her comments, the Ambassador said “more information is needed, and a legal process needs to be conducted” on the matter.
Papuashvili responded by citing the existing conviction against Kezerashvili for embezzlement of Georgian state funds during his time as the Minister between 2006-2008.
“There is a criminal judgement against Kezerashvili. It is confirmed that he stole €5 million from the Georgian army, everyone knows this, including our partners. What additional investigation are we talking about?”, he said.
“Today, Kezerashvili should be serving his sentence in a Georgian prison. Because he is protected, he is free to move freely within the EU member states. It is a fact that he has some patronage, and with this patronage he finances political parties, non-governmental sector, media and riots in Georgia”, the head of the legislative body noted.
The BBC investigation said the Panama Papers - the 11.5 million documents leaked in 2016 to show financial dealings of wealthy individuals and officials across the world - had shown Kezerashvili to be at the centre of the scheme, in which fake call centre operators pretending to represent legitimate agencies offered investment opportunities to their targets in Europe while defrauding them of funds.
The former Minister’s conviction in the embezzlement case in Georgia was upheld by the Tbilisi Court of Appeals last month, after he was ordered by the City Court to pay €5,060,000 in compensation to the Ministry of Defence.
Irakli Kobakhidze, the Chair of the ruling Georgian Dream party, on Wednesday highlighted “interest” from unspecified groups to see the wanted former Defence Minister David Kezerashvili fund “revolutionary processes” in the country with “his bloody, dirty money”.
Georgia’s wanted former Defence Minister David Kezerashvili on Tuesday said the British Broadcasting Corporation’s investigation that alleged his links to an international fraud scheme was a product of a journalist of the Israeli newspaper The Times of Israel, whom he accused of a smear campaign for damaging his “business reputation”.
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili on Tuesday said the British Broadcasting Corporation’s investigation that alleged links of Georgia’s wanted former Defence Minister David Kezerashvili in an international fraud scheme had led to “truth” being “revealed” in the dealings of the former official, whom he called an “international scammer”.
The British public broadcaster BBC on Wednesday revealed its investigation into a fraudulent “call centre” scheme involving David Kezerashvili, a wanted former Defence Minister of Georgia in the United National Movement Government, in a report that detailed a global network of a scam operation targeting customers.
Thea Tsulukiani, the Vice Prime Minister of Georgia, on Monday said the recent investigation by the British Broadcasting Corporation showed “everyone in Georgia” that David Kezerashvili, the wanted former Defence Minister in the United National Movement Government, was “robbing European pensioners” through an international fraud scheme.