Georgian State Security Service releases undercover footage in Giorgi Udzilauri espionage case

The Georgian state security service has released a portion of undercover video surveillance footage related to the case of Giorgi Udzilauri, a high-ranking official arrested on charges of espionage.

According to the service, the footage captures Udzilauri receiving instructions, accepting a cash payment, and signing a corresponding document during a clandestine meeting.

“We are releasing part of the covert video recording, which shows the citizen detained on espionage charges receiving instructions during a conspiratorial meeting, being handed money, and signing the relevant document”, the statement said.

The release of the footage follows a stern statement by Mamuka Mdinaradze,the state minister for law enforcement coordination. Addressing the media, Mdinaradze warned foreign intelligence services of both “friendly and partner” nations that Georgia’s counterintelligence capabilities are now stronger than ever.

Mdinaradze additionally called on the state security service and its leadership to publish a short video showing “how a specific individual receives directives during a briefing, how money is handed over to him in an envelope, and how he signs the relevant document”.

A court has ordered pre-trial detention for Giorgi Udzilauri on espionage charges.

Before his arrest, Udzilauri served as head of one of the main divisions of the investigative service of Georgia’s ministry of finance.