Prosecutor’s Office Says President Pardoned Inmate Who still Faces Trials
By Gvantsa Gabekhadze
Thursday, April 19
(TBILISI)--Georgia’s Chief Prosecutor’s Office announced on Wednesday that President Giorgi Margvelashvili pardoned such a convict last year, whose case is under a discussion in the Court of Appeals.
The Prosecutor’s Office stated that the male individual, identified as N.D., was sentenced to three years in prison in 2016 for inflicting bodily injuries to another person. Later on, the court verdict was appealed.
“However, the president pardoned the individual in 2017, regardless of the fact that the Court of Appeals has not yet delivered its verdict on the case,” the Prosecutor’s Office stated.
The president’s adviser in legal issues Kakha Kozhoridze stated in response that Margvelashvili’s pardon commission has not been provided with relevant materials to know that the case was still in the court.
“This is the performance staged against the president by the Georgian Dream leadership and state agencies,” Kozhoridze said.
The same was claimed by the head of President’s Administration Giorgi Abashishvili, who also blamed the European Georgia opposition for participating in anti-president PR campaign.
Both Georgian Dream and European Georgia opposition have criticized the president for pardoning “a large number” of prisoners, including the man who brutally killed his step daughter, in front of her kids several days ago.
Margvelashvili stated that the pardon commission received a “positive description” of the man from the Ministry of Corrections, which was one of the main reasons the individual saw his prison term commuted by six months.
The president temporarily suspended pardoning of individuals convicted of violent crimes until consultations are over with all the actors to sort out the pardon procedures.
The Ministry of Corrections stated they were ready for such consultations.
According to official figures, the president has pardoned more than 3,000 inmates since 2013.
