Tragedy in Lagodekhi - Attempt to Uncover Financial Police Involvement in Smuggling Results in Death

Tragedy in Lagodekhi - Attempt to Uncover Financial Police Involvement in Smuggling Results in Death

Pridon Buidze told journalists that certain people, with the assistance of the Financial Police, smuggle oil from Azerbaijan through the Lagodekhi customs checkpoint. As a consequence of the information he gave, the Financial Police paid Buidze a visit. After being threatened and intimidated, the anxious man met a sudden death. 

Last week, Pridon Buidze told journalists that certain people, with the assistance of the Financial Police, smuggle oil from Azerbaijan through the Lagodekhi customs checkpoint.  Witnesses say that on the orders of Robizon Papashvili (an officer with the Financial Police working at the checkpoint) the Financial Police paid him a visit. After being threatened and intimidated, the deeply worried man met a sudden death. 

According to the source, that supplied the Human Rights Information and Documentation Centre with the information, over the last few weeks there has been an obvious increase in the smuggling of oil from Azerbaijan to Georgia. The increase has been negatively affecting the business of legal petrol stations in Lagodekhi. Pridon Buidze, an inhabitant of Lagodekhi, gave local journalists detailed information about the oil smuggling flourishing on the ‘Lagodekhi’ customs checkpoint and the role of the Financial Police in supporting it. Officer Robizon Papashvili, a relative of high ranking officials, was named as a supporter of smuggling on the checkpoint. According to the source, the Financial Police take petrol from vehicles petrol tanks when they cross the border, storing it in a larger storage tank to later sell it. Both Georgians and Non-Georgians spoke out about Financial Police corruption a long time ago. We were told that official bodies were also informed about the Financial Police’s behaviour.

According to witnesses, as soon as a journalist contacted Robizon Papashvili for him to comment the situation, the Financial Police visited Pridon Buidze, who subsequently died suddenly as a result of the threats and intimidations directed at him.

“This petrol station belongs to Avto Gelashvili, an inhabitant of Lagodekhi. We sell about 100 liters of petrol per day. We have our own people who supply us with the petrol. We never ask how they manage to import oil from Azerbaijan through the customs checkpoint”, stated Pridon Buidze, who as we have already mentioned, died two days after the interview was taped. Buidze worked at an illegal petrol station that was registered as grocery with the Taxation Service.

Journalists found out about Buidze’s death from an employee of the Financial Police - Robizon Papashvili. “The person you taped yesterday died because he got nervous”, said Papashvili over the phone. “Journalists have previously been informed about particular cases of smuggling. Buidze however, was the first person who spoke out about the smuggling flourishing at the customs checkpoint who did not conceal his name”, points out Marina Gogoladze, a journalist with a regional newspaper. 

Neither the Chief of the Financial Police, Zurab Aivazashvili, nor Robizon Papashvili made any comment about the visit of the Financial Police to Pridon Buidze or his sudden death.

Another owner of a petrol station, Gogi Sikmashvili, says that his station is supplied by one of the companies from Tbilisi. He also mentioned that before this he was supplied by the ‘Tutebi’ petrol station in Telavi. According to the information that has been spread, the aforementioned petrol station is supplied by petrol confiscated on the border. Shalva Eristavi, former Chief of the Financial Police and now the Deputy Governor of the Kakheti region, together with businessman Vano Kevlishvili use the petrol station. We attempted to talk to them but were unsuccessful in our efforts.

The Kakheti Financial Police unofficially rents their petrol storage tank from Kurtanidze, who had been mentioned earlier by Buidze. “There has been an increase in the smuggling of oil from Azerbaijan. Two or three months ago, one could not see a single car at the Lagodekhi customs checkpoint. Nowadays there is a long queue of vehicles. This happens because Robizon Papashvili, a relative of Adeishvili, came back to Lagodekhi where he can do whatever he wants. As for the petrol confiscated from people crossing the border, it is gathered in a tank which belongs to me. Later, I took it to the oil depot in front of the Security Department in Telavi. The oil depot itself is rented by the Financial Police. My tank can be filled with 8.5 tons of oil. Although I have not got any documentation, nobody stops me because they know that they should not do that. The Financial Police pay for my service, however we have never signed any official documents about my employment”, states Kurtanidze, who added that he used to take petrol to the ‘Tutebi’ petrol station as well.

Zura Aivazashvili, the Chief of the Financial Police stated: “The customs officers rented the petrol storage tank from Kurtanidze. However, I do not know anything about the petrol. I will try to find out this information. I do not know either how the owner of the petrol tank is paid without having any official documents. I can tell you nothing about the death of the person, who you say was intimidated by the Financial Police either. I have not got any information about this”. Robizon Papashvili did not make any comments about the case.

According to information from the Regional Administration of Kakheti, confiscated smuggled petrol is used by the Military. Triel Danelia, the Head of the Border Protection Regional Department #6, says that the Lagodekhi Customs Office has never provided them with petrol and that their department is supplied by the Border Protection Department.

Gela Mtivlishvili from Kakheti