Detained official's lawyer says investigation obtained ex-Adjara Head suicide attempt footage

“The investigation has retrieved surveillance footage that clearly shows everything—how Tornike Rijvadze enters the gazebo and takes out the weapon. It’s all visible,” said Lali Aptsiauri, the lawyer representing detained official Aleksi Akhvlediani, head of the Maritime Transport Agency.

According to her, Aleksi Akhvlediani had stored the firearm in a special case, locked and placed in a separate room inside the gazebo.

“Our position regarding the charges is the following: since the firearm was kept in a special case, locked and stored in a separate room… I don’t know how people imagine a gazebo, but from what I’ve seen—and what will likely become public—it’s an enclosed structure with glass panels and a door that can be locked. The case was left in that room. To explain it simply, there is surveillance footage, and it will probably be released publicly.

The investigation has obtained this footage, which clearly shows everything I’ve just described—how Tornike Rizhvadze enters the gazebo and retrieves the weapon.

As for the charges, that will be subject to further legal discussion, because the firearm was stored in a case that he carried with him. And I don’t think anyone carries a case like that into a bathroom. There may have been guests prior to the incident, but at the moment in question, no one else was present, and you will see that in the video,” Aptsiauri said.

Aleksi Akhvlediani, head of the Maritime Transport Agency, has been formally charged by the Prosecutor’s Office. According to available information, former head of Adjara, Tornike Rizhvadze attempted suicide using Akhvlediani’s firearm at his home. The prosecution intends to request a pretrial detention measure within the legally prescribed timeframe.