Jailed ex-aide to Georgia kingpin claims he was snatched abroad
Giorgi Bachiashvili, the former head of Ivanishvili's Co-Investment Fund, fled Georgia in March amid mounting legal troubles following a falling out with the country's most powerful man.
The case has intensified scrutiny of the role of Ivanishvili — who wields enormous influence behind the scenes — in Georgian politics.
Georgia's state security service said Tuesday it had arrested Bachiashvili, a dual Georgian-Russian national, inside Georgia, near the border with Azerbaijan, following an anonymous tip.
But speaking at a court hearing Thursday, Bachiashvii said he had been blindfolded and held incommunicado for two days in an undisclosed country before being forced onto a plane and flown back to Georgia 'in complete violation of the law.'
'Acting on Bidzina Ivanishvili's orders, Georgian officials resorted to banditry and brought me back to Georgia through abduction,' he said.
While abroad Bachiashvili, had been sentenced in absentia to 11 years in prison for alleged embezzlement and money laundering.
'I consider myself absolutely innocent of all charges. Today it became clear that I am a personal prisoner of Ivanishvili,' he told the court.
His lawyer Robert Amsterdam has denounced the case as politically motivated and accused the Georgian authorities of abusing international legal tools to persecute dissenters.
Widely seen as Georgia's key power broker, billionaire Ivanishvili is the founder and honorary chair of the ruling Georgian Dream party.
He holds enormous sway over the party and the government, including the formal power to nominate its choice of prime minister.
Georgian Dream, in power for more than a decade, has been accused by critics of steering the country away from the West and toward Russia — a claim it denies.
Georgia was gripped by mass protests for weeks last year following a disputed parliamentary election in October and the government's subsequent decision to freeze its EU membership bid.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
4 days ago
- Arab News
Top Pakistani general discusses enhancing defense, security ties with Turkish, Azeri officials
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's General Sahir Shamshad Mirza met senior defense officials of Turkiye and Azerbaijan on Wednesday to discuss strengthening existing security and defense ties between the countries, Pakistan Army's media wing said. Islamabad has grown closer to Ankara and Baku after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev openly pledged support for Pakistan during its latest military confrontation with India in May. Mirza, who is the chairman of joint chiefs of staff committee (CJCSC) of the Pakistan Army, was attending the 17th International Defense Industry Fair in Istanbul, renowned for showcasing cutting-edge innovations and advancements in the defense sector. The Pakistani general held separate meetings with General (retired) Yasar Guler, Turkiye's minister of national defense, Col. General Hasanov Zakir Asgar Oglu, Azerbaijan's minister of defense, Gurbanov Agil Salim Oglu, Azerbaijan's deputy minister of defense and General Metin Gurak, the chief of Turkish general staff. 'Discussions were held on variety of issues of bilateral military cooperation with emphasis on importance of expanding cooperation in the fields of defense and security,' the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the military's media wing, said in a statement. 'The dignitaries reaffirmed their shared commitment to deepening strategic partnerships and enhancing defense corporation in line with dictates of future geo-strategic environment and technological advancements.' The Turkish and Azeri officials reaffirmed their commitment to deepen strategic partnerships and enhance defense cooperation, keeping in mind the future geo-strategic environment and technological advancements, the ISPR added. Earlier this month, Turkiye's defense and foreign ministers arrived in Pakistan for a series of high-level meetings that reportedly focused on counterterrorism, defense cooperation and broader strategic ties. Pakistan and Turkiye have maintained close defense ties in recent years. Under a 2018 agreement, Türkiye is delivering four MILGEM-class corvettes to the Pakistan Navy, with two built in Istanbul and two at Karachi Shipyard under a technology transfer arrangement. The first vessel, PNS Babur, was delivered in 2023.
Al Arabiya
4 days ago
- Al Arabiya
Republican congressman Mike Lawler says he won't run for New York governor
US Rep. Mike Lawler, a moderate Republican representing a suburban New York swing district, said Wednesday he won't run for governor next year. Lawler had been viewed as a potentially strong challenger to Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul. But another prominent House Republican, Rep. Elise Stefanik, also has been eyeing a candidacy. She said in a statement Wednesday she'll decide after this November's election. Lawler, a second-term Congress member from the state's Hudson Valley north of New York City, told the Fox and Friends morning show that running for reelection to the House 'was the right thing to do for me and my family and my district.' 'Keeping the House majority is critical if we are going to continue to move this economy in the right direction,' he said. The announcement comes after Lawler held a series of sometimes raucous town halls in his district over the spring – at a time when Republicans were being advised to skip the forums that were drawing angry questions about President Donald Trump's agenda. Trump in May endorsed Lawler for reelection in the 17th Congressional District, calling him a 'Strong Champion and Highly Effective Representative' in a post on Truth Social. Hochul, a former lieutenant governor, assumed the top office in 2021 after predecessor Andrew Cuomo resigned. Hochul then was elected in 2022. She also faces a challenge from her own lieutenant governor, Antonio Delgado, amid a feud between the two Democrats. Lawler arrived in the House after defeating former US Rep. Mondaire Jones, a Democrat who previously represented part of the district. During that campaign, The New York Times obtained a photo of Lawler wearing blackface in 2006 at a college Halloween party where he dressed as singer Michael Jackson. Lawler said the outfit was intended to be an homage to a childhood idol.
Al Arabiya
5 days ago
- Al Arabiya
Hunter Biden accuses George Clooney of undermining father in 2024 presidential election
Former President Joe Biden's son, Hunter, isn't hiding his feelings about actor and Democratic Party donor George Clooney's decision to call on the elder Biden to abandon his 2024 reelection bid. In a rare online interview, Hunter Biden used a string of expletives to describe Clooney when discussing the actor with Andrew Gallagher of Channel 5. Clooney supported Democrat Joe Biden's bid for a second term and even headlined a record-setting fundraiser for the then-president. But the actor changed his stance after Biden turned in a disastrous debate performance against Republican Donald Trump in June 2024 and added his voice to mounting calls for the then-81-year-old president to leave the race. Clooney made his feelings known in an opinion piece in The New York Times. Biden ended up leaving the race a few weeks later and endorsed his vice president Kamala Harris. She lost to Trump. In the lengthy and wide-ranging interview, Hunter Biden questioned why anyone should listen to Clooney and said the Ocean's Eleven actor had no right to undermine his father. 'What right do you have to step on a man who's given 52 years of his f***ing life to the services of this country and decide that you, George Clooney, are going to take out basically a full page ad in the f***ing New York Times to undermine the president?' Hunter Biden said before he trailed off to talk about how Republicans are more unified than Democrats. Joe Biden served 36 years in the US Senate and eight years as Barack Obama's vice president before he was elected president in 2020. Los Angeles-based representatives for Clooney did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment Tuesday.
