Employees of the Central Criminal Police Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, together with the General Prosecutor’s Office, have arrested 21 people linked to the so-called criminal world within the past 24 hours based on a court decision.
Central Criminal Police Department Director Davit Kiknadze said at a briefing that nine additional individuals have been charged in the case, some while in penitentiary facilities and others in absentia, including alleged criminal authority Elmuraz Mamedov, who is abroad.
He said that, as a result of covert investigative measures authorized by a court, it was established that the accused organized so-called burglaries to settle financial disputes, with the participation of Mamedov.
Kiknadze said Mamedov was in contact with associates in Georgia, who pressured citizens to pay large sums of money from their businesses for the benefit of the group and under so-called “thieves’ rules.” He added that in case of non-compliance, they threatened victims with physical violence or death.
Police operations were carried out in Tbilisi, Shida Kartli, and Kvemo Kartli. During searches, mobile phones and computer equipment used for communication between the defendants and individuals abroad were seized as evidence.
The ministry also said more than $62,000 in cash, allegedly collected for the “thieves’ world,” vehicles belonging to the defendants, as well as ammunition and firearms, were seized during searches of residential properties.
The investigation is ongoing.
