Georgian Public Defender says no evidence found of alleged ill-treatment of convict Giorgi Davitadze

Georgian Public Defender Levan Ioseliani said on Friday that the Public Defender’s Office reviewed video footage from a penitentiary facility following a complaint by convict Giorgi Davitadze, but found no evidence supporting allegations of ill-treatment.

Ioseliani said Davitadze contacted the Public Defender’s Office on December 26, 2025, regarding an incident that allegedly occurred on December 20-21.

“Convict Davitadze contacted us on December 26 regarding the December 20-21, 2025 incident. As he explained, he had allegedly been subjected to ill-treatment, including threats of rape. On the same day, we fully reviewed the footage from both December 20 and December 21 at the penitentiary facility and did not observe any evidence depicting such conduct”, Ioseliani said.

He added that, during a meeting attended by Davitadze’s lawyer, neither the convict nor his legal representative expressed dissatisfaction with the Public Defender’s Office’s handling of the case.

“In addition, he contacted us periodically regarding other issues, including in June, when he once again raised allegations of a sexual offence. We had already examined that period, and he was referring to the same timeframe. Accordingly, in the presence of his lawyer, he was informed about the work carried out by the Public Defender’s Office, what had been observed and what had been examined. At that time, neither he nor his lawyer expressed any complaints against us”, Ioseliani noted.

The Public Defender also said the Office contacted the Prosecutor’s Office after receiving allegations that prison guards had insulted and verbally abused Davitadze.

“He also alleged that he had been insulted and verbally abused by prison guards. In connection with this, we contacted the Prosecutor’s Office, and the Prosecutor’s Office launched an investigation”, Ioseliani said.

The Special Penitentiary Service has released video footage showing Davitadze being transferred to a de-escalation cell on December 21, 2025, as well as footage from the period he spent there.