14:19, 24 April 2017

Law enforcers detain suspects of organizing riots in Batumi

Batumi City Court. Photo: Sputnik/Seyran Baroyan

Two persons have been detained in Georgia under the ruling of the Batumi City Court on suspicion of organizing riots in the capital of Adjara on March 11.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on March 11, after policemen imposed a fine on a resident of Batumi for a wrong parking, a spontaneous protest action broke out in front of the building of the GUVD (Interior Department) of Adjara, which demanded, among other things, resignation of Malkhaz Batiashvili, the chief of the patrol police. The action turned into riots, during which 18 protesters and 15 policemen suffered; seven cars were destroyed and burned down.

In connection with the Batumi riots, Merab Gogoberidze and Irakli Chkhvirkiya, who are suspected of organizing the riots, were detained, the “Georgia-Online” reports, referring to the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA).

Irakli Chkhvirkiya is a former member of the oppositional “United National Movement” (UNM) Party, and Merab Gogoberidze is the head of the NGO “Centre for Combating Corruption”.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.