Former Deputy Infrastructure Minister arrested, search conducted at ex-Minister’s home

Koba Gabunia, the former Deputy Minister of Infrastructure of Georgia, has been arrested on charges of abuse of official authority, while a search was conducted at the home of former Minister Irakli Karseladze, Ia Akhalaia, the Deputy Head of the Investigation Service of the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday.

Akhalaia said the arrest was carried out jointly by the Investigation Service and the State Security Service as part of an investigation into alleged corruption involving public officials.

“The arrest is linked to allegations of abuse of power in connection with mismanagement of state funds”, she added.

As part of the complex investigative operation, searches were conducted at 20 different locations, including the homes of Gabunia, Karseladze and other individuals involved.

Earlier, the former Executive Director of the Municipal Development Fund, Davit Tabidze, along with a programme and project manager from the same institution, were detained in connection with the same case and later released on bail after cooperating with investigators.

The investigation has also implicated executives of Lagi Capital, accused of fraudulently embezzling ₾9.3 million ($3.41mln) allocated for the renovation of 30 kindergartens and laundering an additional ₾1.2 million ($0.44mln) in illicit income.

According to case materials, between July 2023 and May 2024, the company submitted unjustified advance payment requests to the Municipal Development Fund. Acting under Gabunia’s instructions, officials allegedly misused their authority by granting Lagi Capital a total of ₾11.2 million ($4.11mln) in unsubstantiated advances, despite evidence that previous funds had not been spent as intended.

The investigation is ongoing under several articles of Georgia’s Criminal Code, including abuse of power, fraud, money laundering and falsification of documents - crimes punishable by nine to 12 years of imprisonment.