Valeriia Kirliuk remanded in custody over failure to assist dying Abkhaz blogger Daur Buava

Ukrainian national Valeriia Kirliuk has been remanded in custody as a custodial measure following her arrest in connection with leaving Abkhaz blogger Daur Buava in danger. The ruling was delivered by Judge Arsen Kalatozishvili at Tbilisi City Court.

The accused was absent from the hearing. According to her defence counsel, she remains under intensive care treatment at the Vivamedi clinic.

Prosecutors requested pre-trial detention, citing flight risks, potential destruction of evidence, and the risk of reoffending. The prosecution highlighted that even two days after exiting the flat, the suspect had failed to alert authorities or emergency services to Buava’s incapacitated state.

The defence opposed the strict custodial measure, urging the court to consider that the defendant remains hospitalised in intensive care. The accused Ukrainian national continues to exercise her right to remain silent.

For context, Abkhaz blogger Daur Buava was found dead at his residential flat in Tbilisi on 28 August. On 29 August, law enforcement officers arrested his partner, foreign national Valeriia Kirliuk, under Article 128 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which addresses leaving a person in danger.

According to investigators, the pair had consumed narcotic substances before both fell ill. Detectives allege that the suspect abandoned Buava while he was in a critically severe and life-threatening condition, locked the flat door from the outside, and fled the scene. A parallel investigation is also underway under Article 115 regarding incitement to suicide. As part of the broader probe into Buava’s death, police have additionally arrested two individuals on charges of purchasing and possessing narcotic drugs.