Lawyer: former Defence Minister Burchuladze innocent of alleged offence

Georgian Former Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze is innocent of the crime that led to his detention, his lawyer Dimitri Khachidze said on Friday.

“The charges have not yet been officially filed, but regarding the grounds for his detention - he is innocent of this offence. He did not commit what the investigation accuses him of. Based on the case materials we have seen so far, the accusations are absurd. Once the charges are formally presented, we will have access to the full file and can provide more detailed comments,” Khachidze stated.

Georgia’s State Security Service detained Burchuladze on Thursday. According to investigators, under the former minister’s instruction, the price of an MRI machine was artificially inflated, leading to a purchase that cost ₾1.33 million ($0.49mln) more than necessary.

The investigation also alleges that in January, Burchuladze’s family bought a house in Spain for €544,000. To conceal the illicit origin of the funds, he allegedly signed fictitious loan and sale agreements involving property in Tskneti, an urban-type settlement in southwestern part of Vake District of the Georgian capital city of Tbilisi.