(Read full article on civil.ge)

The General Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia has announced today it had launched criminal proceedings against UNM-era Deputy Interior Minister Giorgi Lortkipanidze for helping ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili illegally cross Georgia’s state border on the night of September 28-29.

The prosecution said, Lortkipanidze will face charges for violating Articles 25 and 344 of the Criminal Code, assisting in illegal border crossing, in particular, creating appropriate conditions to cross the border unlawfully, envisaging 3 to 5 years of imprisonment.

The prosecution argued that Lortkipanidze knew about Saakashvili’s intentions and had planned “when, by what means, by what route, and in what manner” the ex-President could covertly return to Georgia from Ukraine, where Saakashvili had resided.