Prepared by Messenger Staff
Court Sentences Mikheil Saakashvili to 12.5 Years in Prison for Border Crossing and Embezzlement
The Tbilisi City Court has found Mikheil Saakashvili, the third president of Georgia, guilty of illegally crossing the state border, sentencing him to 4 years and 6 months in prison. Additionally, he was sentenced to 8 years for embezzling state funds, bringing the total sentence to 12 years and 6 months.
In response to the court's decision, Saakashvili condemned what he called a series of illegal and "shameful" actions by the government, which he accused of using the judicial system to destroy him physically while behind bars. He referred to the court ruling as an act of "destruction under the guise of a court order," claiming that it was intended to intimidate both his supporters and the Georgian public.
Saakashvili further argued that the ruling was also meant to send a threatening message to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. "They are telling him that the same fate awaits him if he does not surrender Ukraine," Saakashvili stated.
UNM Chair Bokuchava Criticizes Zourabichvili for Not Pardoning Saakashvili
Tinatin Bokuchava, the Chairperson of the Unity - National Movement, strongly criticized the decision by President Salome Zourabichvili not to pardon former President Mikheil Saakashvili. During a briefing at the party office, Bokuchava accused Zourabichvili of sharing responsibility for the "historical injustice" against Saakashvili, who was sentenced to 12.6 years in prison for illegal border crossing.
Bokuchava emphasized that Zourabichvili's refusal to use her constitutional power to pardon Saakashvili, despite international calls, directly contributed to the harsh sentence. She further stated, "No matter what anyone thinks today and what political taste they have, it will definitely be written in the pages of Georgian history that the fifth president of Georgia, who tried to resist the Russian occupation regime with the European flag, did not pardon the third president of Georgia, who first raised the European flag in Georgia."
Bokuchava concluded by assuring Saakashvili that the United National Movement would continue to fight for his freedom. "We will be as united as ever, and we will have your words today as a torch - 'We fight and we win.'"
