Polish professional “admitted” he attempted smuggling ex-Pres. Saakashvili’s sample - Justice Minister

Rati Bregadze, the Georgian Justice Minister, on Sunday said a Polish professional who had been allowed to inspect the state of health of the imprisoned former President Mikheil Saakashvili in a Tbilisi clinic had “admitted” an attempted smuggling of the former official’s biological sample out of the facility on July 12.

Bregadze said the professional, who was visiting Saakashvili in clinic alongside his colleagues, had admitted in an interview the attempt of smuggling the sample by concealing it in his shoe. 

Bregadze’s social media post came following the statement by Georgia’s Special Penitentiary Service, which on Friday released footage allegedly showing the attempt and said one of the two visiting Polish professionals had attempted to smuggle the sample out despite having had an official permission to take it. 

In his post, the Minister accused unspecified domestic forces of “misleading the public” over the incident by “fake claims” that the discovered sample could have belonged to the medical professional rather than having been taken from Saakashvili. 

The Polish professional himself admitted he had placed Saakashvili’s bio sample in his sock to sneak it out. We call on everyone to refrain from making provocative statements and deceiving the public. Let us wait for the official explanation”, Bregadze said. 

In its statement last week, the Service said the doctor's actions had created “additional concerns and contradicted both medical ethics and legal norms”.

The Polish professionals visited Saakashvili at Tbilisi Vivamedi civilian clinic, where he has been receiving treatment since May 2022, on July 12. 

Zurab Chkhaidze, the Medical Director of the clinic, on Thursday said the visiting group of Polish medical professionals had “approved” the treatment offered by the staff of the venue to the former official, hailing his team’s communication with them as “very collegial, constructive and positive”.

Saakashvili, who currently holds Ukrainian citizenship, is serving a six-year-term for abuse of power while in office in two separate cases, while three other cases involving him are still pending. He was arrested in Tbilisi in October 2021 after eight years abroad, following his clandestine return to Georgia ahead of domestic municipal elections.