Georgian police arrest 12 in prostitution crackdown

Twelve people have been arrested and 13 venues shut down in Tbilisi and the Samegrelo region in Georgia’s west as part of an operation against organised prostitution, the country’s Interior Ministry announced on Wednesday. 

Tornike Marsagishvili, head of the anti-trafficking and illegal migration unit at the Central Criminal Police Department, said the coordinated operation was carried out with the Prosecutor General’s Office over the past 24 hours on the basis of court warrants.

Those detained include both Georgian and Chinese nationals. Officials said undercover surveillance, including audio and video recordings, confirmed that venue managers and administrators systematically facilitated prostitution.

Investigators also alleged that managers rented premises on Tbilisi’s Marjanishvili, Agmashenebeli, Dadiani and Tsinamdzghvrishvili streets to women engaged in sex work, assisted them in finding clients, and took a share of their earnings. Authorities said prostitution-related income formed the main revenue of the establishments.

During searches, police seized cash believed to have been generated from prostitution activities.

The case is being investigated under Article 254 of Georgia’s Criminal Code, which covers facilitating prostitution and providing premises for sex work. The offence carries a maximum penalty of up to four years in prison.