Former defence officials remanded in high-profile procurement fraud case in Georgia

A Tbilisi court has ordered the pre-trial detention of three individuals, including a former Deputy Defence Minister of Georgia, Giorgi Khaindrava, in connection with an alleged large-scale embezzlement scheme involving military procurement.

Tbilisi City Court Judge Irakli Khuskivadze ruled on Tuesday that Khaindrava, former head of the Defence Ministry’s Procurement Department Vladimer Gudushauri, and Vasil Mkheidze - the brother-in-law of former Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze - should remain in custody pending further investigation.

Prosecutors had requested the most severe form of preventive measure - imprisonment - citing the risk of interference with the investigation. Defence lawyers argued in favour of bail, but the court sided with the prosecution.

According to investigators, the accused are suspected of colluding to manipulate the procurement process for an MRI machine intended for a military hospital. Authorities alleged that with Mkheidze's involvement, an artificial, non-competitive environment was created, inflating the cost of the equipment through fictitious deals.

The resulting damage to the Ministry of Defence has been estimated at 1,333,728 GEL.