- The Georgian prosecutor’s office accused the ex-prime minister of money laundering.
- Garibashvili faces up to 12 years in prison for this act.
- Police seized $6.5 million in cash from his home.
The Georgian Prosecutor General’s Office on Friday accused former Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili of large-scale money laundering. A week ago, authorities in Georgia raided the homes of several former high-ranking politicians, including the ex-prime minister. TASR informs about it according to a Reuters report.
The aforementioned raids were carried out by the police in the homes of Garibashvili and two other long-time associates of the pro-Russian oligarch and founder and honorary chairman of the Georgian Dream government party, Bidzin Ivanishvili. According to Georgian media, the prosecutor said that in the house of the former prime minister, the police seized 6.5 million dollars in cash. He faces up to 12 years in prison on charges of large-scale money laundering.
In Georgia, interventions are currently underway against the pro-Western opponents of Ivanishvili, who have been organizing a protest for over a yearand accuse his Georgian Dream party of pro-Russian and authoritarian tendencies.
Although Georgia has no formal diplomatic relations with Russia, from 2022, it deepens relations with its neighbor, saying that it wants to preserve peace above all, Reuters reports.
Police have already detained several opposition leaders, but the indictment of Garibashvili, who was prime minister from 2013 to 2015 and then from 2021 to 2024, represents the first case of prosecution of a key member of the ruling elite, according to Reuters.
