Georgian musician Misho Sulukhia has stated that unidentified individuals identifying themselves as law enforcement officers stopped him near Lake Lisi in Tbilisi and subjected him to physical violence.
On his social media accounts, Sulukhia recounted that the taxi he was riding in was blocked off, after which he was pulled out of the vehicle, had his mobile phone confiscated, and was beaten. The unidentified individuals claimed to be police officers but failed to present any credentials.
The musician states that he was surrounded, had his freedom of movement restricted, and was prevented from answering an incoming phone call.
According to Sulukhia, a search yielded nothing illegal, and he was completely sober.
“They smashed my phone screen. I cried out for help, but nobody heard me. I pleaded with them to return my phone, but to no avail.
I saw them preparing an object wrapped in black electrical tape, and at that moment, I bolted from the group.
Thanks to my good physical condition, I managed to get away from them—out of the seven individuals, none could catch up with me. The taxi driver, whose name I don’t even know, is still being held there under threat and pressured to confess to participating in an organized crime, with them claiming that he and I are criminals.
I managed to break away from this group, made my way through the thicket, and asked some young people for help so I could access Facebook and publish this statement in time.
They were trying to force a confession onto me for a crime I had nothing to do with. Please, someone help me—I have been left cut off from communication. First and foremost, I demand the integrity of my phone and personal data, as well as a meeting with the Public Defender [Ombudsman],” the musician wrote.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia, however, presented its own version of events. According to the ministry, Misho Sulukhia was “behaving suspiciously” on foot in the Lisi area, and police stopped him merely for an identity check.
“A citizen previously convicted of a drug-related offense and currently on probation, who was moving suspiciously on foot in a wooded area near Lake Lisi, was stopped by law enforcement officers for an inspection.
The individual failed to comply with the lawful order of the police, threw his mobile phone onto the ground, and fled the scene.
Law enforcement officers duly sealed the mobile phone on-site, as well as a bank card found inside its case,” the Ministry of Internal Affairs stated.
According to the agency, the case is being investigated under Article 173 of the Code of Administrative Offences of Georgia, which establishes liability for disobeying a lawful order of a law enforcement officer.