13:31, 22 October 2021

Seven figurants in Tbilisi riot case left in custody

The police detain protesters during the clashes at the protest action against the gay parade in Tbilisi. July 5, 2021. Photo: REUTERS/Irakli Gedenidze

The court has extended the custody of seven defendants, opponents of the gay parade in Tbilisi, accused of attacking journalists.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on July 5, 2021, at the actions against the gay parade in Tbilisi, according to journalists' estimates, dozens of their colleagues were beaten up. The journalistic community claimed the inefficiency of the investigation and demanded resignation of the government. In September, Nino Lomdjariya, the Georgian Ombudsperson, criticized investigators for the fact that the organizers of the riots had not been punished.

On July 10, within this case, five suspects were placed behind bars: Tsotne Chikhladze, Bekar Maisuradze, Mukhran Dadvani, Tornike Vabliani and Otar Gelashvili. According to investigators, they attacked the journalists of the "Pirveli", Public Broadcaster and the "InterPressNews".

At the moment, 57 persons have been recognized as victims of the riots, the "InterPressNews" reports. There are 31 defendants in the attack case, the "Sputnik-Georgia" has reported.

Let us remind you that on July 11, one of the journalists beaten up in Tbilisi, Lekso Lashkarava, was found dead in his house.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on October 21, 2021 at 04:52 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Source: CK correspondent