80-year-old doctor denied bail for shooting his director in air-conditioner incident

Teimuraz Bezhanidze, a 80-year-old doctor, was denied bail by Tbilisi City Court on Monday for shooting his director at the Georgian National Center of Dermatology and Venereology, Giorgi Galdava, on August 5 in a dispute over an air-conditioner. 

The defendant, who claimed to have more than 30 years acquaintance with the victim, told the court that it was not an attempted murder as he was charged with, stating that his singular motivation was to “frighten” Galdava, as the latter did not let him use the room for which he [Bezhanidze] had bought the air condsitiner. 

Bezhanidze said that after expressing his discontent, Galdava instructed a lawyer to prepare documents for his dismissal. 

“I was very angry and decided to frighten him [Galdava]. I keep my gun in the office because I have grandchildren at home. At that moment when I fired the shot, Galdava stood up and a bullet hit his shoulder”, Bezhanidze said, adding that “Galdava’s action pushed me to commit the crime”. 

If found guilty, Bezhanidzse could be sentenced to 10-15 years in prison. 

The trial is scheduled on September 20.