The Tbilisi City Court has sentenced Romeo Mikautadze, former Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development, to ten years’ imprisonment. He has additionally been barred from holding public office for a period of two years.

Judge Nino Galustashvili delivered the verdict. Mikautadze was found guilty on all counts brought against him.

Under the terms of the judgment, the following assets are to be confiscated: a 120 sq m flat in Spain, a house of 1,200 square metres in Tserovani, several motor vehicles, a 15% stake in Nakhiduri Hydroelectric Power Station, and items seized during searches of his property.

At the preceding hearing, Mikautadze exercised his right to make a final statement, declaring that he was prepared to “confess to a crime that does not exist, pay damages that do not exist, and enter into a plea agreement.” The prosecution, for its part, clarified that as Mikautadze had not admitted guilt, no plea agreement could be concluded.

For context, law enforcement officers arrested the former First Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development on June 20, 2025. Mikautadze faced charges under several articles of the Criminal Code, among them Article 333, concerning abuse of official authority resulting in the violation of the lawful rights of natural or legal persons, or of the interests of society or the state, which carries a penalty of a fine, house arrest of between six months and two years, or imprisonment of up to three years, with the possible additional sanction of a ban on holding office or practising a profession for up to three years.

He was further charged under Part 2 of Article 332, which concerns abuse of official authority by a person holding a state or political position, punishable by a fine or imprisonment of between three and five years, with a ban on holding office or practising a profession for up to three years.

Charges were also brought under Article 337, which covers the founding of a commercial enterprise by a civil servant or equivalent person, or participation in its management in defiance of a prohibition, as well as the obtaining of unlawful benefits or advantages through patronage, carrying a sentence of between six months and two years’ house arrest, or two to four years’ imprisonment, with a ban of up to three years on holding office or practising a profession.

Finally, Mikautadze was charged under Article 194, Part 3, Subparagraph (g) of the Criminal Code, money laundering involving the receipt of proceeds on a particularly large scale, an offence punishable by nine to twelve years’ imprisonment.