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The News in Brief

Monday, December 23
By Lizi Zurabiani



Tsotne Gamsakhurdia wounded in Tbilisi on December 19

Tsotne Gamsakhurdia was wounded in Tbilisi on December 19th. The investigation is in progress under the article 19-108 of Criminal Code of Georgia, which implies attempted murder.

Eyewitnesses tell details of Tsotne Gamsakhurdia's death. According to one of them, he saw a fight break out and then Gamsakhurdia was wounded. He was provided first aid on the spot.

“I saw that he was wounded on the neck. When the ambulance arrived, he was already passed out,” said the eyewitness.

Tsotne Gamsakhurdia's first surgery was performed at the Khechinashvili Clinic, he underwent chest surgery, after which a tomographic examination showed that he needed neurosurgical surgery. Archil Jvareshishvili, a surgeon, told reporters that the patient's condition was very critical and that two more surgeries were needed.

“Even though the operation was successful and we removed the hematoma and the brain condition was somewhat satisfactory, his condition remains severe. In a few days, the forecast will be clear. This does not mean that the threat has already passed. It may require further surgery of both head and chest,” said the surgeon.

Salome Zourabichvili visited Gamsakhurdia at the clinic.

The president commented after the visit:

"I don't know the details of the attack. The result is horrible. I talked to Mrs. Manana this morning. So, I came to see him,” she said.

MIA has detained 1 person for the attempted murder of Tsotne Gamsakhurdia and 4 persons for not reporting the crime. Deputy Interior Minister Vladimir Borsvadze made this statement at the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

According to the agency, officers of the Old Tbilisi Police Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia detained one person for attempted murder and four for not reporting the serious crime as a result of operative-searching and investigative activities.

“At this stage, the investigation has established that T.Gh. a person detained attempted murder, on December 19, in Gali Street, near Tsotne Gamsakhurdia’s home, in the vicinity of his residence, in the context of a verbal altercation, he inflicted several injuries using a sharp object and escaped from the scene,” the investigation noted.

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, if convicted, the person arrested for attempted premeditated murder can be sentenced to 7 to 15 years, while those charged with not reporting the crime may face imprisonment from 3 to 7 years.

According to the lawyer of one of the detainees, those charged with the attempted murder of Gamsakhurdia and the reporting of crime were at one table before the incident happened.

According to one of the persons questioned in the case, the confrontation between began over wine. He says that Gamsakhurdia offered one of the guests ‘good wine,’ but few of the guests did not like the wine, which irritated Gamsakhurdia. According to one of the witnesses, Gamsakhurdia started the verbal and then the physical confrontation.

The detainees are Petre Kuparadze, Tornike Kvatadze, Giorgi Sologashvili, Kakha Chkhetiani and Tato Garibashvili were formally charged on December 21.

One of the detainees, Giorgi Sologashvili, was charged with failure to report a particularly serious crime of attempted murder but it was overqualified as attempted murder. Therefore, 2 persons have been criminally liable for the charge of attempted mass murder in the aggravated circumstance of Tsotne Gamsakhurdia and 3 persons for not reporting the crime.