The Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia has filed charges against eight individuals in a case involving the fraudulent acquisition of large sums of money by an organized group using their official position, money laundering, and organizing the fabrication, as well as the fabrication and use, of forged tax and official documents.
According to the agency, an investigation conducted by the State Security Service of Georgia established that in the fall of 2019, David Peradze, the former Director General of LLC Georgian Railway, formed an organized criminal group.
Under the scheme, the group collected, transported, and sorted scrap metal belonging to Georgian Railway in a way that made it impossible to determine its exact original volume. As part of the scheme, instead of being stored, a portion of the collected scrap metal was systematically transported by truck to the GeoSteel plant, where it was subsequently sold. To conceal the origin of the metal, the participants of the scheme prepared forged tax documents.
According to the Prosecutor’s Office, between 2020 and 2021, the members of the criminal group illegally acquired 22,120 tons of scrap metal belonging to the railway. After disguising its origin, the metal was sold to GeoSteel, and the proceeds were accumulated in the bank accounts of the companies involved in the scheme, subsequently being withdrawn in cash and distributed among the group members.
As a result, investigators claim, Georgian Railway suffered damages totaling 17,391,121 lari.
In addition, the Prosecutor’s Office reported another episode. In 2022, Peradze allegedly formed a new organized group. On April 29, 2022, a contract was signed between Georgian Railway and the company Raveldi to repair rail defects.
During the execution of the work, investigators allege that, acting on Peradze’s instructions, the then-director of the railway’s infrastructure branch and the director of the contracting company entered false information into the acceptance certificates. Based on these documents, Raveldi received 403,844.69 lari more than it was owed from the railway, also causing significant financial damage to the company.
Those detained, as well as two individuals charged in absentia, face charges of:
- large-scale fraud committed by an organized group using their official position;
- money laundering;
- organizing the fabrication of forged tax and official documents;
- the fabrication and use of such documents.
According to the Prosecutor’s Office, the charges carry a maximum penalty of up to 12 years in prison.
The Prosecutor’s Office intends to petition the court to order pretrial detention for the defendants. The two individuals charged in absentia will be placed on a wanted list.