Georgian police arrest 47 individuals on drug-related crimes

Aleksandre Darakhvelidze, the Georgian Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, on Thursday said as part of the fight against drug related crime, 47 drug offenders had been detained following a special operation conducted in Tbilisi and the regions over the past 24 hours.

In his remarks, Darakhvelidze noted that the detained individuals were charged with illegal purchase and possession of large quantities of narcotics, attempted and facilitated illegal sale.

The crimes are punishable by up to 20 years or life imprisonment.

“The said police operation was carried out by officers of the Georgian Interior Ministry, together with the Prosecutor General's Office, based on a judge's ruling. Among the detainees are both Georgian and foreign citizens. Evidence obtained as a result of intensive investigative actions conducted by law enforcement officers, including secret audio-video recordings made based on a judge's ruling, establishes that the arrested drug dealers systematically sold narcotics to citizens using various methods and means”, Darakhvelidze said.

“During the search of the detainees' cars, personal and residential homes, the police also seized a particularly large amount of narcotics as evidence from the locations indicated by them, including: heroin, methadone, Alpha PVP, Suboxine, Subotex, methamphetamine, hashish, opium, marijuana and the plant cannabis. The investigation is underway under Articles 260, 260 tertia and 260 quarter of the Georgian Criminal Code”, he continued.

Darakhvelidze expressed his special gratitude to all law enforcement officers who performed their duties with dignity every day, often at the risk of their own lives, in the fight against drug crime.

He further noted that the Government’s stated policy in the fight against drugs was clear and unchanging, adding “all those who endanger the lives and health of our citizens, especially young people, will be punished to the fullest extent of the law”.