Former Defense Minister Juansher Burchuladze, charged with abuse of official authority and legalization of illegal income, has been imposed with pre-trial detention as a preventive measure.
Judge Eka Barbakadze thus satisfied the motion of the prosecution.
Prior to this, the defense had petitioned the court for bail, which the judge did not accept.
For reference, according to the Prosecutor’s Office, in 2023, Juansher Burchuladze abused his official position, with the assistance of his deputy, relative, and the former head of the Procurement Department of the Ministry of Defense of Georgia, to supply a medical device to the military hospital for 3,940,000 GEL instead of 2,606,272 GEL, resulting in property damage of 1,333,728 GEL to the ministry.
In March 2025, Juansher Burchuladze and his spouse purchased property in Spain for 544,000 EUR. To conceal and disguise the origin of these funds and to give them a legal appearance, they entered into a fictitious purchase agreement for real estate in Tsqneti with a third party.
The former Defense Minister is accused of legalizing illegal and unjustified income totaling 1,593,212 GEL.
Juansher Burchuladze has been charged under subparagraph “c” of the third part of Article 194 and the second part of Article 332 of the Criminal Code, which pertain to the abuse of official authority by a state-political official and the legalization of illegal income. These actions carry a penalty of 9 to 12 years of imprisonment.
