Georgian police detain five for participation in criminals’ meeting
By Tea Mariamidze
Wednesday, February 13
Georgia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) reports that they have detained five people with the charges of being a member of the criminal group, their support or participating in their gathering.
The crimes committed by them envisage imprisonment from 6 to 10 years.
According to the investigation, on January 27, criminals gathered in a residential apartment in Tbilisi to solve the disagreement between one of the arrested criminals and one businessman. The other four detained also participated in the dispute.
Moreover, MIA says a Georgian so-called thief-in-law, wanted by Interpol Sulkhan Jafaridze (formerly Sulkhan Tvalchrelidze), also participated in the dispute via an electronic communication channel and settled the conflict according to the so-called criminal rules.
The police detained 5 persons in Tbilisi on February 11, 2019, while Sulkhan Japaridze, the "thief-in-law" will be charged in absentia.
“The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia continues to fight against the criminal world. Our goal is to eliminate so-called thieves-in-law and the criminal mentality associated with it,” the MIA stated.
In April last year, the Parliament of Georgia adopted proposed amendments by the MIA on tightening of punishment for criminal organized group membership.
According to the changes, any person who appears to be a member of a criminal group or a "thief- in- law", for the purpose of settling any dispute or making any decisions, or supports the criminal world, will be punished according to the law.
Anyone who organizes the meeting of criminals or so-called “thieves-in-laws” or takes part in such meetings will be punished too.
Furthermore, if under the current criminal code, being a “thief-in-law” is punished by 7-10 years imprisonment, according to the amendments, this punishment will be increased to 10-15 years in prison.
As for membership of an organized criminal group, the punishment will be a term of seven to ten years instead of the previous 5-8 years.
