A plea agreement has been concluded for former Defense Minister Juansher Burchuladze, accused of accepting an especially large-scale bribe as part of a pre-arranged group, and his relative Vasil Mkheidze, accused of aiding and abetting bribery. The deal reached by the parties was approved by Judge Pikria Sikhturashvili.
Both Burchuladze and Mkheidze attended the court hearing. Neither delivered a speech, responding only with “yes” to the judge’s clarifying questions.
According to the ruling, Juansher Burchuladze was found guilty under sub-paragraphs “a” and “c” of Part 2 and sub-paragraph “e” of Part 3 of Article 338 of the Criminal Code of Georgia. He was sentenced to five years of imprisonment, of which three years will be served in a penitentiary facility and two years will be suspended with a corresponding probationary period. He was also ordered to pay a fine of 1,000,000 lari (approximately $380,000).
As for Vasil Mkheidze, he was found guilty under Articles 25 and 338 (Part 2, sub-paragraphs “a” and “c”; Part 3, sub-paragraph “e”) of the Criminal Code of Georgia. He was sentenced to four years and two months of imprisonment, serving one year and two months in a penitentiary facility, with three years suspended under the same probationary terms. In addition, he was handed a fine of 100,000 lari.
The Prosecutor’s Office filed new charges against Burchuladze and Mkheidze today. However, the agency stated that “taking into account the degree of their cooperation with the investigation,” a plea agreement was reached with the defendants.
According to investigators, beginning in late 2022, the Ministry of Defense of Georgia required the procurement of expensive medical equipment and supplies, which was to be handled under a classified (secret) procedure. Under an arrangement with Juansher Burchuladze, his relative Vasil Mkheidze contacted an acquaintance who was an experienced entrepreneur, proposing to structure the procurement to guarantee a win for the businessman’s affiliated company at the desired price. In exchange, he demanded 10% of the total contract value in cash.
The businessman requested additional guarantees from senior officials. In turn, Burchuladze, in his reporting capacity, coordinated with then-Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Garibashvili to conduct the Defense Ministry procurements under a scheme guaranteeing the victory of the entrepreneur’s commercial entities at an inflated price in exchange for substantial illegal financial gains.
According to the prosecution, having secured Garibashvili’s official patronage, medical apparatus and other supplies with an actual value of 11,499,705 lari were delivered to the Georgian Defense Ministry across three secret tenders at an inflated price of 18,484,960 lari.
Of the 1,500,000 lari received as a kickback, Juansher Burchuladze kept 750,000 lari, while personally delivering the other half—750,000 lari—in installments as a bribe to Irakli Garibashvili.
Notably, in connection with the same case, Burchuladze has already been convicted of abuse of official authority and money laundering, receiving a sentence of 10 years of imprisonment.
As for Vasil Mkheidze, he was convicted of aiding and abetting the large-scale embezzlement of state funds and sentenced to eight years in prison.