Mtavari Arkhi claims Prosecutor's Office raided their premises

Georgia’s General Prosecutor’s Office has entered the premises of broadcaster Mtavari Arkhi (Main Channel) and its associated sales contractor to seize financial documents, the channel has stated.

According to a statement issued by Mtavari Arkhi, prosecutors presented a court order on Wednesday demanding the full handover of the company’s financial records. The investigation reportedly stems from a complaint filed by Gogi Kurdadze, a director appointed by Zaza Okuashvili, one of the channel’s co-founders.

Kurdadze has accused the current management and other co-founders of financial misconduct, prompting the probe. The channel, however, claims the allegations are unfounded and politically motivated, asserting that Okuashvili has been aligned with the interests of the pro-Russian regime in Georgia.

“As we stated back in the autumn, Zaza Okuashvili has been levelling false and baseless accusations against the channel’s management and co-founders, serving the interests of the Russian-backed regime,” the channel's statement reads.

Mtavari Arkhi alleges that the ruling Georgian Dream party has used Okuashvili to dismantle Georgia’s leading critical media outlet and is now continuing pressure based on what they call defamatory claims.

“There is no criminal wrongdoing in Mtavari Arkhi’s financial operations. An impartial prosecutor’s office would not have even opened an investigation based on Kurdadze’s complaint, given how absurd the accusations are. But it is clear that Georgian Dream is not interested in justice, only in fulfilling political goals,” the channel added.