22-Year-Old Tedo Abramovi Acquitted of Serious Drug Charges Linked to Protests
Tbilisi City Court Judge Tamar Mchedlishvili announced the verdict early on August 15. Abramovi was charged with illegal purchase and possession of a large quantity of narcotics, punishable by 8 to 20 years in prison or life imprisonment. He pleaded innocent, with the defense arguing that drugs had been planted on him because of his activism, and citing the absence of safeguards, such as video evidence of the police search or the presence of a neutral, impartial witness, during the search.
Abramovi walked free from the courtroom to the cheers of his supporters and family.
'To be punished in the country my parents taught me to love as a child, and to be punished for loving that country, is simply a shame,' Abramovi said in his closing remarks on August 14,
according to
Publika
. 'I believe I will be proven innocent.'
Abramovi, who was born in emigration and reportedly arrived in Georgia to take care of his grandmother, was arrested on December 7 last year while, according to the defense, on his way to a pro-EU rally. The defense alleges that police concealed evidence from the search that would have indicated his intended destination. Abramovi also alleged inhuman treatment upon his detention.
Abramovi was charged under Article 260 of the Criminal Code with the illegal purchase and possession of a large quantity of narcotics, an offense punishable by 8 to 20 years in prison or life imprisonment, with police arguing the defendant was carrying 4.41548 grams of MDMA.
Prosecutors initially
claimed
that Abramovi's resistance during the search prevented police from filming the procedure. But a police witness later
testified
that they had attempted to film the search but stopped due to a memory overload on the device.
The prosecution cited forensic analysis indicating the presence of Abramovi's biological traces on the drug packaging. Abramovi, however, claimed that his saliva sample had been artificially taken upon detention. His defense noted that saliva was the only trace found on the packaging and
cited
a separate expert report which, they said, confirmed he had not used any narcotic substances. The lawyers also highlighted the prosecution's refusal to order a similar study.
Abramovi's case was one of the six drug trials widely linked to the defendant's activism, with other cases including that of doctor and activist Giorgi Akhobadze, journalist Nika Katsia, and three Russian citizens –
Anastasia Zinovkina, Artem Gribul
, and
Anton Chechin
. Critics have pointed out that all cases have followed the
same worrying pattern
, including investigations initiated on unverified 'operative information' from undisclosed sources; testimonies relying solely on law enforcement officers and affiliated witnesses; and a lack of neutral observers or video recordings during searches.
In a surprise verdict on August 6, Akhobadze was acquitted of his drug charges, marking the first not-guilty verdict among those arrested in the context of protests since November 2024. Commenting on the verdict, Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze pointed to 'high legal standards' in Georgia, saying the court was obliged to release a person if '100% evidence' was lacking. 'Akhobadze was released from detention precisely because no video was made,' Kobakhidze told reporters on August 7.
Abramovi's verdict marks the second acquittal after Giorgi Akhobadze, among dozens who have been detained in the context of protests since November 2024.
Twelve persons were handed down jail sentences among those detained in the same period, including
Anatoli Gigauri
,
Temur Zasokhashvili, Davit Lomidze,
Mzia Amaghlobeli
,
Anri Kakabadze
,
Anri Kvaratskhelia
,
Saba Jikia
,
Giorgi Mindadze
,
Mate Devidze
,
Denis Kulanin,
Daniel Mumladze, and Guram Khutashvili
.
Seven more remain in prison after being convicted over their involvement in the spring 2024 protests against the foreign agents law, including Omar Okribelashvili, Saba Meparishvili, and Pridon Bubuteishvili, who were
convicted
in January, Davit Koldari, Giorgi Kuchuashvili, and Giorgi
Okmelashvili
, who were convicted
in February
, as well as Irakli Megvinetukhutsesi, convicted in December.
Eight individuals, including six active opposition politicians, were recently
sentenced
to prison terms of several months for defying the Georgian Dream investigative commission.
Politpatimrebi.ge
,
a civic platform documenting the cases of detainees, currently lists over 60 persons who were jailed in 2024-2025 and are considered political prisoners.
The verdicts come as no police officer has been held accountable despite numerous
documented abuses
during dispersals. Dozens of protesters remain in pre-trial custody, awaiting their rulings on similar or other protest-related charges.
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