Chief of the Military Police Admits to Threatening Journalist

“Bondo Khutsinashvili pointed out during the interrogation, that he had rebuked journalist Saba Tsitsikashvili,” stated the resolution 01/22-1/04-190, issued on January 25, 2007 by the Gori Prosecutor’s Office.

On February 15, 2006 journalist Saba Tsitsikashvili, a resident of the village of Kvakhvreli in the Gori District, appealed to the Shida Kartli Regional Prosecutor’s Office. He stated in his appeal that on February 13, 2006 Khutsinashvili had threatened him over the mobile phone. The Internal Ministry’s Gori District Department launched a preliminary investigation on criminal case # 1106307 on the basis of the journalist’s appeal.

Tsitsikashvili claimed that Khutsinashvili had threatened him because of his article “Military Police are being reinforced in the Conflict Zone”, which was published in the Georgian newspaper, “Akhali Versia” (new version).

“What have you written in the “Versia”?! I will drag you to the gorge and cut your head off…” etc. These are just a couple of the threatening phrases that were mentioned by Irakli Okruashvili’s subordinate, Khutsinashvili during his conversation with the journalist. Tsitsikashvili pointed out in his appeal that the incident was repeated five times and took place in the Press Service Office of the Shida Kartli Regional Police. The head of the Press Service and some other people witnessed the incident.

Saba Tsitsikashvili appealed to the Public Defender, Sozar Subari who questioned witness Eter Sadaghashvili and the others who stated in their testimony that Khutsinashvili threatened Tsitsikashvili and could easily recognize the official’s voice.

Sadaghashvili and other witnesses said to the law enforcers that Khutsinashvili rebuked the journalist because of the article he had published in the Akhali Versia.  The witness said the official did not threaten the journalist at all.

Khutsinashvili pointed out during the interrogation that he had only rebuked Tsitsikashvili over the phone.

Tsitsikashvili claims that Khutsinashvili was the only person who admitted to having insulted the journalist.

“I knew from the very beginning that Khutsinashvili had admitted to having spoken with me over the phone but he did not say he had threatened me. Khsutsinashvili said he had only rebuked me. Witnesses commented on his rebukes in their testimonies to the Public Defender. Having heard Khutsinashvili admitted to our conversation, I demanded to make up with him during the additional interrogation. However, he has not called me yet to apologize. Khutsinashvili was shouting at me over the phone for having blamed him for smuggling, though I had written nothing about that in the article. Apparently, somebody lied to him about the content of my article and he “rebuked me”, said Saba Tsitsikashvili.

Soon after the article “Military Police are being reinforced in the Conflict Zone” was published in the newspaper, the Military Police halted its activities in the gorge.

Saba Tsitsikashvili, Gori