Former State Security Service and Ministry of Internal Affairs employees sentenced to 5 years in prison each for violence against Levan Khabeishvili

Former employees of the State Security Service and the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) have been sentenced to five years in prison each for acts of physical violence committed against Levan Khabeishvili, a leader of the National Movement party.

The ruling was delivered by Judge Jvebe Nachkebia during a hearing held yesterday at the Tbilisi City Court.

For context, in connection with the 2024 protests, the Prosecutor's Office arrested five individuals for acts of violence against protester Zviad Maisashvili, politician Levan Khabeishvili, and journalist Guram Rogava. The group included three former special forces officers, one active-duty special forces officer, and one active-duty employee of the Security Police Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Two of the special forces officers are already in custody in connection with separate, ongoing criminal investigations. All five detainees have been charged under Subparagraph 'b' of Part 3 of Article 333 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which pertains to the abuse of official authority involving violence. Additionally, the individual detained in connection with the incident involving Rogava has been charged under Part 2 of Article 154, which concerns the unlawful obstruction of a journalist’s professional activities through the use of violence. These charges carry a penalty of 5 to 8 years of imprisonment.