Former Defense Minister Juansher Burchuladze, charged with abuse of official authority and legalization of illegal income, does not plead guilty to the charges brought against him.
As his lawyer, Dimitri Khachidze, told journalists after leaving the State Security Service, Burchuladze intends to attend the hearing on the imposition of a preventive measure, provided his health allows.
“The position remains unchanged; he does not consider himself guilty, and there is no change in our stance. He wishes to attend [the hearing], his health condition is stable and improving, so he will likely attend. However, he remains on bed rest,” Khachidze stated.
According to the lawyer, there are no grounds for requesting detention as a preventive measure against Juansher Burchuladze.
“The case materials were provided to us electronically, and Juansher has not reviewed them, as he physically couldn’t. If we look at the justification for requesting detention, from a legal and procedural standpoint, it is impossible to substantiate, because the risks for which detention is typically imposed simply do not exist, and there is no evidence to support the existence of such risks. Mere assumptions that something might happen, that he might flee, or what he might do, are not permissible and do not constitute grounds for detention under either our or international legislation. The investigation into this case began around June, and at no stage can the investigation claim that Juansher Burchuladze, his family members, or persons connected to him have obstructed the investigation in any way,” Khachidze said.
When asked whether he expected the detention, he responded:
“If we reason from the position that he is innocent, has not committed a crime, and all the evidence that might seem suspicious to the prosecution or investigation can be substantiated and presented by us, then, of course, it was unexpected,” the lawyer stated.
Regarding what he attributes the detention to and whether Burchuladze plans to speak at the hearing, Khachidze replied that “he will speak at the trial himself.”
When asked whether he expects the circle of potential culprits to expand, including the possible detention of former Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, the lawyer said he does not know.
“I cannot say. What has escalated in this case does not comply with the law, and predicting unlawful actions is difficult… We are well aware that declaring Juansher Burchuladze guilty suits everyone in political circles, both the government and the opposition. The government will say it is fighting corruption, while the opposition will say it is a corrupt government. Everyone is against us, that’s how it appears,” Khachidze stated.
For reference, according to the Prosecutor’s Office, in 2023, Juansher Burchuladze abused his official position, with the assistance of his deputy, a relative, and the former head of the Procurement Department of the Ministry of Defense, to supply a military hospital with a medical device for 3,940,000 GEL instead of its actual value 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 this property and give it a legal appearance, they concluded a fictitious purchase agreement with a third party for real estate in Tsqneti.
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 of Georgia, which pertain to the abuse of official authority by a state-political official and the legalization of illegal income. These offenses carry a penalty of 9 to 12 years of imprisonment.
Lawyer: It turns out that declaring Juansher Burchuladze guilty suits everyone in political circles – the government will say it’s fighting corruption, the opposition will say it’s a corrupt government; Everyone is against us, that’s how it appears
