Saakashvili was sentenced to 9 years in prison for embezzlement of budget funds

Saakashvili was sentenced to 9 years in prison for embezzlement of budget funds

Mikheil Saakashvili has been sentenced to nine years in prison in the so-called case of the jackets. The former president of Georgia was found guilty of the large-scale embezzlement of public funds.

The verdict was announced by Tbilisi City Court Judge Badri Kochlamazashvili. The former head of the Special Protection Service, Teymuraz Janashia, was found guilty of abuse of office and fined 300,000 lari.

Saakashvili and Janashia have repeatedly denied the charges, claiming that the trial has a political basis.

Saakashvili is currently serving a six-year prison sentence. Verdicts in two other cases — the amnesty for the murderers of Sandro Girgvliani and the attack on Deputy Valeri Gelashvili — were issued earlier.

The new prison term will begin from the moment of Mikheil Saakashvili’s arrest — October 1, 2021. Thus, according to the verdict, he will be able to be released only on October 1, 2030. Meanwhile, court proceedings against him continue regarding the events of November 7, 2007, and illegal border crossing.