“Nobody rejoices in punishing anybody, even cruel Bacho Akhalaia (former defence minister),” said Gia Volski, First Vice Speaker of the Georgian Parliament.

According to Gia Volski, Bacho Akhalaia is exercising his right to remain silent, which indicates that something bad was happening and that he was involved in it.

“The whole system is set up. There, with people connected to this revolutionary group, explosives sent from Ukraine were discovered. Bacho Akhalaia was called every minute on October 4; the movement routes of these extremists were changing. In general, much money was spent on lobbyists.

All this should be reviewed in one context. Nobody rejoices in punishing anybody, even cruel Bacho Akhalaia. The state’s interest is foremost. Specific individuals, forces need disorder, bringing puppets into power for a specific purpose.

Bacho Akhalaia, by exercising his right to remain silent, indicates that something bad was happening and that he was involved in it. Of course, the investigation will present its materials; it must be infallible to outweigh the defense’s line, but it is up to the judge to decide,” he said.

For context, the State Security Service of Georgia (SSSG) arrested former Defence Minister of Georgia Bacho Akhalaia (2009-2012) on December 26 in connection with the October 4 case. The agency identified Bacho Akhalaia as “the leader and principal organiser of the criminal events.”

The Georgian Prosecutor’s Office indicted former Defence Minister Bacho Akhalaia on the charge of supervising and organizing group violence. The charge under Part 1, Article 225 of the Criminal Code of Georgia pertains to up to 9 years in prison as a punishment measure.