Police Arrests 17 People over Alleged Sex Tape Leak
By Tea Mariamidze
Monday, February 4
17 people were detained over the sex tape leak, which allegedly shows the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) lawmaker Eka Beselia.
In a statement released on February 1, the Interior Ministry said the detainees were circulating the video recording via social networks and mobile phone applications.
The ministry said the disclosure of recordings containing private life is an offense under the Georgian legislation and is punishable by imprisonment from 4 to 8 years.
On February 3, Tbilisi City Court ordered pre-trial detention for one of the 8 persons detained in connection with the secret recordings, while the other seven will be released on bail.
The judge only partially granted the prosecution’s motion, which was asking for the imprisonment of seven and bail for one of the detained.
Pre-trial detention was ordered only for Zurab Solomnishvili, who stands accused of uploading a secret video on YouTube.
The bail amounts for the other 7 are Irma Khoroshvili - 10000 GEL, Inga Khoroishvili - 2000 GEL, Sergo Iremashvili - 5000 GEL, Giorgi Partsvania - 5000 GEL, Spiridon Surameli - 10000 GEL, Giorgi Kasradze - 5000 GEL, Badri Chopriani - 5000 GEL.
As for the remaining 9 people, their trial took place on February 2.
Tbilisi City Court sentenced two persons to pre-trial imprisonment, while seven other detainees were granted bail.
The Court ruled a GEL 10 000 bail for Maia Beridze, a GEL 2 000 bail for Mariam Chaduneli, Ani Aroshidze was granted a GEL 2 000 bail, Tengiz Iremadze – GEL 3 000, Nona Zhorzhadze- GEL 2 000, Giorgi Gasviani – GEL 1 500, Irakli Kasrasahvili was granted a GEL 3 000 bail.
Giorgi Vashadze, one of the leaders of the United Opposition Power is in Unity, believes that the release of secret recordings depicting a private life is plotted by special services.
He believes the authorities try to divert the attention to the detention of those people, to whom they sent the secret recordings as private messages.
The main thing is who ordered and who spread it. The society is well aware of it. This is a government’s game to divert the attention to the number of detentions and not to the fundamentally fight against this problem, "said Giorgi Vashadze.
Archil Talakvadze, leader of the parliamentary majority, thanked the law enforcers for their efficient work.
“I would like to express my gratitude to the law enforcers that they responded very rapidly and identified not only those people who were allegedly spreading this information but also the person who presumably uploaded it first,” he said, adding that the ruling party supports their teammate Beselia.
Former Head of Parliament’s Legal Affairs Committee, Eka Beselia, who resigned at the end of December, says the personal life video which went viral recently, was recorded under the United National Movement (UNM) government.
She urged the law enforcement agencies to “immediately uncover who stands behind the dirty campaign.”
