Khatuna Paichadze: two figurants in case of torture in Georgian prison not found yet

The Prosecutor's Office and the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) of Georgia search for persons suspected of beating a prisoner on February 24, 2012, in the penitentiary institution No. 15. This was told to the "Caucasian Knot" by Khatuna Paichadze, Head of the Press Service of the Chief Prosecutor's Office.

"At present, Levan Lezhava and Georgy Pardjanadze, two former staff members of the penitentiary institution No. 15, were detained (on April 11, they were detained on charges of torture and inhuman treatment of a prisoner, note of the "Caucasian Knot"). The court has chosen for them the pre-trial restriction measures in the form of detention at the SIZO (pre-trial prison) for the period of investigation. Dmitry Chkheidze and Shota Tolordava, two other defendants, have fled from law enforcement agencies, and at present, their location is unidentified. However, law enforcement agencies carry out operational and search activities," the "Caucasian Knot" was told by Khatuna Paichadze.

At the preliminary court session held on April 18, prosecutors brought charges under Article 144-1 of the Criminal Code of Georgia ("torture") and Article 144-3 of the Criminal Code of Georgia ("inhuman or degrading treatment").

According to the prosecutors' version, on February 24, 2012, Shota Tolordava, Director of the prison No. 15, Levan Lezhava, Head of the Legal Regime Division, Georgy Pardjanadze, Head of Security Division, and Dmitry Chkheidze, Head of Detention Division, beat a prisoner in the yard of the administration building of the penitentiary institution. After the beating, according to the investigators' information, the staff members of the prison raped the beaten prisoner with a rubber truncheon.

At present, in Georgia, apart from the staff members of the Ksani prison, the investigation is underway on the case of ill-treatment in two other prisons the Kutaisi prison No. 2 and the Rustavi prison No. 16.