Finance Ministry’s Investigation Service arrests three individuals across separate criminal cases

Officers from the Georgian Ministry of Finance’s Investigation Service have arrested three individuals across three separate criminal cases following investigative and covert search operations, the agency confirmed in an official statement.

“In the first criminal case, investigators established that an employee of the Telavi Municipal Service Centre abused their official position by unlawfully demanding and accepting GEL 500 from a citizen in exchange for performing land clearance work using municipal heavy machinery. The investigation is proceeding under Article 221, Part 3 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which carries a potential prison sentence of two to four years.

In the second case, a veterinary officer from the National Food Agency was arrested on a court warrant for commercial bribery committed as part of a group in the Mtskheta-Mtianeti region. The investigation revealed that the suspect issued falsified laboratory test reports to a customer in exchange for cash. Proceedings are underway under Article 221, Part 4, Sub-clause ‘a’ of the Criminal Code of Georgia.

In the third criminal case, a doctor employed at a medical facility in Kakheti abused their position to illicitly forge and issue a prescription for a psychotropic substance to a citizen. The suspect was taken into custody during the investigation, which is being conducted under Article 268, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, carrying a prison sentence of three to six years.

The Investigation Service of the Ministry of Finance of Georgia will continue robust enforcement and preventative measures nationwide to combat financial crime and corruption,” the official statement read.