Former Defence Minister Bacho Akhalaia left the Criminal Police Department building after his interrogation.

He told reporters that the questions mainly concerned the audio recording released on October 4. He stated that law enforcement officers were interested in whom he knew among the organisers and recorded his answers “to compare them with the voice sample.”

“My voice is heard here; this voice was there too, and clearly, these are different voices, voices from different worlds. I have nothing to hide. I explained clearly who I know, where I know them from, what relationships I have, who I am close to, where I live, etc.,” he said.

Reporters inquired about reports that the First Medical Aid Brigade was called to the police station because he was feeling unwell.

“I don’t know, my lawyer told me about that. I have no idea what it meant,” Bacho Akhalaia responded.

Remarking on the summoning of his wife Ana Nadareishvili to the State Security Service (SSSG), Bacho Akhalaia said: “I don’t know about Ani, I have not called her yet. I’ll find out what’s going on.”

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Bacho Akhalaia has been summoned to the Criminal Police Department for questioning as a witness and voice sampling as part of the criminal investigation into the events that broke out in Tbilisi on October 4. Bacho Akhalaia arrived at the police station at 1 p.m.

On October 4, Imedi TV released an audio recording purportedly of a telephone conversation between Paata Burchuladze and Bacho Akhalaia. However, the authenticity of this recording has not yet been verified. The dialogue is said to concern the events of October 4.