Amnestied Prisoners Repeatedly Committed Crimes

Saba Tsitsikashvili, Shida Kartli

At the March 19 briefing Georgian Minister of Interior Irakli Garibashvili stated that about 150 of the amnestied people under the Amnesty Law of December, 2012 were repeatedly arrested. A month later, Sozar Subari, Minister of Legal Aid and Corrections, increased the number up to 200.

Parliamentary opposition stated that the adopted law deteriorated criminal situation in the country. Human Rights Center searched some cases in Gori, where crimes were committed by amnestied prisoners.

Fact I

23-year-old Al. N from Kaspi was convicted for swindle about cell phone. After the Amnesty Law was passed, N was released from imprisonment. On February 4, 2013 the amnestied prisoner was repeatedly arrested – he was accused of the attempted murder of his friend and premeditated damage of health.

Lawyer Nodar Tsintsadze protects the rights of 23-year-old accused. The lawyer said his client did not aim at deteriorating public order and safety. The incident was connected with the family problem – he got jealous about his wife. The accused person’s sister said that her brother had witnessed betrayal fact.

Fact II

65-year-old T.Ts. from Gori faces life imprisonment. Gori district prosecutor’s office blames him in several crimes – namely sexual abuse of 20-year-old girl, attempt of premeditated murder in grave circumstance and attempt of premeditated murder in the moment of sudden, strong emotional collapse.

According to the prosecutor’s office, the accused had lived with the mother of the wounded girl since 1996. In 2010 the accused was convicted for having wounded his neighbor and in December of 2012 he was amnestied.

Having left prison, the accused returned to the same family to live in but his wife had gone to Turkey to work; only his step-daughter was at home.

The accused and the girl had bad relationship. She stated at the trial on April 26, 2013 that the man had sexual intercourse with her through violence when she was 15. “Afterwards he was blackmailing me and threatened with death if I had told it to anybody,” the girl said.
The mother returned from Turkey after the daughter called her and informed about the accident.

“The man lived with us during several years. I treated him like my father but he was very aggressive towards me. He often seized phone from me and checked it. He forbade me meeting with friends and was jealous about me. He used to accompany me when I was visiting my friend. After he left prison, he again had sexual intercourse with me under force; after the incident I ran away from home and immediately called my mother who was in Turkey. This time, I could not hide this fact from her. My mother arrived here next day. We filed complaint at the police, expelled him from home and forbade coming to our house. He was calling and intimidating us during two months demanding to withdraw the complaint from police. Of course we refused,’ the girl said at the trial.

 “On January 29, 2013, my mother, our neighbor and I were at home. He silently entered the house without knocking the door. He had his hand in the pocket holding a knife in it. Mother got nervous at seeing him and asked to leave. He said he was going to kill us and tried to attack Mother. I stood between them and asked him to kill me instead my mother. First he wounded me in the breast and then when he again tried to attack my mother, I blocked his way again and he wounded me in the belly. I have third wound on the hand but I do not remember when he wounded me; I was unconscious at that moment,” the victim girl said.

As for the complaint, which the plaintiffs lodged at the police, the expertise conclusion was not yet known to the investigation when the girl was wounded.

“When neighbors came to our house having heard our screaming and called patrol police, he ran away. Investigator told me that he was convicted for rape of 15-year-old child in 1982 and for illicit purchase/keeping of weapon. I want this person to be severely punished,” the mother said at the trial.

The accused denies all aforementioned accusations and claims that he had arrived at the plaintiffs’ house to find out why they had sued him. He called them swindlers and expressed doubt that they did not like him to have left prison and wanted to get rid of him,

“The God will not forgive you and your daughter so much lie,” the accused told his former wife.

Fact III

Prosecutor’s office blames 15-year-old juvenile from Gori in thievery. The incident occurred in barrack settlement in Mejvriskhevi village. The juvenile broke the lock of his neighbor’s warehouse, got into it and stole electric wire, electric welder, stationary and personal items, sweets (total price of 165 lari) from there.

The juvenile pleaded guilty and was released under bail of 1000 lari. He returned the stolen things to the owner.

A year ago, the juvenile was sentenced to one-year imprisonment for the same crime; then he was amnestied in December of 2012.

The lawyer of the convicted Maguli Gogoladze said her client is from socially vulnerable family; he lives together with his mother in extreme poverty.

“We want this child to grow up an honorable member of the society. We hope he will be involved in socially useful work. His mother worked at shop. The boy stopped going to school when he was in the sixth form because the family could not buy text-books for him,” Maguli Gogoladze said.