Appeals Court today upheld the decision made by Tbilisi City Court into so-called Cyanide Case and ruled a guilty verdict against Archpriest Giorgi Mamaladze, charged for having attempted to poison a high-ranking clergyman with Cyanide. Archpriest was convicted for plotting pre-meditated murder of Shorena Tetruashvili, Secretary-Referent of Georgian Patriarch on vengeance motive as well as illegal purchase and keeping of firearms. Mamaladze will serve 9 years in prison based on the court’s ruling. Judge Natia Barbakadze announced the decision.

Archpriest Mamaladze did not attend the court process. He does not plead guilty and accuses investigation of being not objective. Both sides plan to appeal against the decision in Supreme Court of Georgia. Prosecutor’s Office will attempt to aggravate the charge, while lawyers will send the case to the European Court of Human Rights to struggle for acquitting of their defendant.

Discussions into the so-called Cyanide Case continued during 6 months. Archpriest Giorgi Mamaladze was detained on February 10, 2017. The so-called Cyanide Case represents one of the high-profile and closed cases in Georgian judiciary. Many questions remain unanswered in the public.