The lawyer of Ukrainian citizen Mikhailo Skrubsky, detained on charges of illegal acquisition, possession and transportation of explosive substances, claims that two people in military uniform gave her client a parcel, but he didn’t know what they were.

“He was working, he had a lorry. Two people dressed in military uniform approached him and asked him to take some items. He didn’t know specifically what it was. They told him that someone would meet him here and collect them. Both were arrested in Batumi precisely when handing over the said box. He admits he didn’t know specifically what it was, so he shouldn’t have taken it,” declared lawyer Dali Barbakadze.

According to the lawyer, Mikhailo Skrubsky didn’t know the people who gave him the parcel.

“He says he didn’t know them; they simply worked in Ukraine’s armed forces, and after presenting identification, they gave him items to bring from Ukraine via Turkiye. In Batumi, he was supposed to meet a person who would collect these boxes. He knows nothing more. He travels frequently, he’s a transit driver, he often arrives, brings certain things and returns,” stated Dali Barbakadze.

Media representatives asked Dali Barbakadze whether her client had taken the parcel in exchange for money, to which Barbakadze replied that there had been no talk of any money.

“No, there was no talk of any money. They were uniformed personnel, and that’s why he couldn’t refuse. As far as I know from my colleague, the second person is exercising his right to silence,” noted Dali Barbakadze.

Based on operational intelligence received, the State Security Service of Georgia (SSSG) and the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) have apprehended two Ukrainian nationals through targeted operational and investigative efforts.

The SSSG stated at the briefing that a MERCEDES-BENZ lorry with Ukrainian number plates, travelling from Ukraine towards Georgia via Romania and Bulgaria, crossed the state border from Turkiye and entered the country through the Sarpi customs checkpoint on September 10, 2025. As a result of its inspection and search, 2.4 kilograms of the explosive substance Hexogen were found in the vehicle, placed in carefully concealed containers.

According to the SSSG, despite one of the detained suspects indicating in testimony that the explosive material’s final destination was the Russian Federation, operational materials show that at this stage only one final location is evident: a residential building in Tbilisi’s Avlabari district.