Two Turkish citizens, detained by officers from the Counter-Intelligence Department of the State Security Service of Georgia (SSSG), have been remanded in custody whilst under investigation for allegedly attempting to acquire radioactive material through unlawful means.
Tbilisi City Court Judge Davit Kurtanidze handed down the ruling.
At the hearing, the prosecution moved for a custodial remand, citing risks of flight, destruction of evidence, and reoffending. The defence took issue with this position. The lawyer representing one of the detainees argued that his client had accompanied a friend to the Tskaltubo district with the intention of purchasing gold for resale in Türkiye, and that no unlawful intent had been present. Counsel noted that his client is a married man with three children and a pregnant wife, works in construction, and does not possess the funds necessary to purchase radioactive material. As an alternative to custody, the defence proposed a bail of 5,000 lari.
One of the accused is exercising his right to silence; the other denies the charges.
Following the hearing, prosecution lawyer Elizbar Gozalishvili stated that the court had fully accepted the prosecution’s position. He added that the intended purpose of acquiring the radioactive material was to remove it from Georgia, though the final destination country remains unknown to investigators at this stage.
According to the prosecutor, the case file contains a substantial body of evidence corroborating the charges against the accused, including covert audio and video recordings as well as witness testimony. He further stated that the defendants had planned to pay the material’s asking price of three million US dollars in cryptocurrency.
Separate hearings were also held on the same day for several individuals detained by the State Security Service in connection with illegal logging, the unlawful inflation of the K-2 coefficient, unauthorised construction, and bribery. All were remanded in custody.