Georgian Deputy MIA head suspected of aiding Saakashvili

Giorgi Lortkipanidze, a former Deputy Interior Minister, had developed for Mikhail Saakashvili a plan for crossing the Georgian border and provided him with his car, in which the politician arrived at the Black Sea port, the Georgia's General Prosecutor's Office (GPO) has suggested.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on October 20, 2021, the Georgia's GPO accused Mikheil (Mikhail) Saakashvili, a former Georgian president, of illegally crossing the state border. On October 3, charges were brought against Elgudja Tsomae, the owner of the apartment in which Saakashvili was hiding after his return to Tbilisi.

According to investigators, Giorgi Lortkipanidze, a former Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia, was aware of Saakashvili's intentions to cross the state border and helped him in doing so by drafting a plan, route and method of crossing the border, Levan Vepkhvadze, the Georgian Chief Public Prosecutor, has stated live today on air of the "Imedi" TV Company.

A criminal case has been initiated against Giorgi Lortkipanidze under two articles of the Criminal Code – on complicity and on illegal crossing the Georgia's state border. He faces up to five years in prison, the Prosecutor has specified.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on December 10, 2021 at 11:30 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.