Businessman Giorgi Kandelaki released on bail in counterfeit alcohol case

Businessman and former athlete Giorgi Kandelaki has been released from custody after a court replaced his pre-trial detention with bail set at 200,000 lari.

Kandelaki was arrested on 17 September along with six other individuals as part of an investigation into an alleged illegal alcohol production operation in the central Georgian city of Gori.

According to investigators, the group is linked to an unlicensed factory where counterfeit branded alcoholic beverages were being produced using improvised methods. Law enforcement officials say a warehouse containing non-excise cigarettes was also discovered at the site.