Mother of murdered tutor Avaliani accuses defendants of avoiding key witness testimony

Eka Kupatadze, the mother of murdered teacher Giga Avaliani, has criticised the handling of the ongoing murder trial, claiming that the failure to question several witnesses, including herself, reflected a fear that the full truth about her son's death could emerge.

Speaking as the trial of Giorgi Malania continues at Tbilisi City Court, Kupatadze accused those involved in the case of undermining the judicial process.

Kupatadze alleged that Nia Imnadze introduced Giorgi Malania to Aleksandre Gabashvili after an attack on her son had already been planned, claiming that the introduction was made specifically to facilitate the attack.

She questioned why Imnadze, Gabashvili and Kupatadze herself had not been called to testify in court, arguing that their testimony could reveal important details about the circumstances surrounding the killing.

“This is a mockery of justice,” Kupatadze said, suggesting that those involved feared witnesses might disclose information that had not yet emerged during the proceedings.

“I will not allow anyone to normalise a situation in which sons kill innocent people and their fathers treat it as acceptable,” she added.

According to the prosecution, the case dates back to September 2025, when Nia Imnadze, who had begun receiving mathematics lessons from Avaliani, allegedly told her friends that the teacher was showing her “excessive attention.” Prosecutors said the information prompted Aleksandre Gabashvili to plan an attack on Avaliani with others.

Investigators said Gabashvili, Giorgi Rikadze, Demetre Chikovani and others subsequently identified Avaliani, obtained his photograph from social media, established his home and workplace addresses and studied his daily movements. On 29 September 2025, Gabashvili, Rikadze and Chikovani allegedly waited near the training centre where Avaliani worked but failed to carry out the planned attack.

On 1 October 2025, according to the prosecution, Gabashvili and Rikadze attacked Avaliani near a residential building in Tbilisi’s Sea District. He suffered severe injuries and died in a medical facility on 24 October 2025, 23 days after the attack.