Kezerashvili Wins Legal Battle with BBC
Former Georgian Defense Minister David Kezerashvili stated that he has won a legal dispute with the BBC over defamation, adding that the British Broadcaster has removed all content related to him, including investigative reports, articles, and other materials from its platforms that had accused him of involvement in illicit financial activities.
In a Facebook post, Kezerashvili explained that BBC has withdrawn all investigative reports, articles and materials from its platforms, effectively ending what he described as a two-year “defamation process.” The former minister asserted that court materials and audited reports conclusively demonstrate that allegations of illegal income are “a complete lie”.
Kezerashvili was featured in the BBC’s April 2023 documentary about a fraudulent call center scheme allegedly linked to him. The documentary referred to Kezerashvili as the founder of numerous call centers operating from the Pixel building in Tbilisi, suggesting a link to large-scale financial fraud. Kezerashvili, however, denied the charges since the release of the documentary, calling them “false and politically motivated.”
Kezerashvili accused the Georgian government of launching a campaign aimed at misleading both, domestic and international audiences. Citing relevant court decisions, he stated that “All similar campaigns by the ‘Georgian Dream’ have been assessed by courts either as severe violations of human rights (the 2024 Strasbourg Court ruling) or as political persecution (decisions by the courts of France and Great Britain).” Kezerashvili expressed his gratitude to his legal team, adding that: “BBC will reimburse all my legal expenses related to the lawsuit.”
Concurrently, on December 9 the Russian FSB announced the shutdown of an international call center network, alleging it to be “operating in Kezerashvili’s interests.” The Russian security service claimed the network was part of an international organized crime group committing mass fraud against citizens in multiple countries, including EU member states, Great Britain, Canada, Brazil, India, and Japan.
“The Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation has stopped the illegal activities of an international network of call centers that were acting in the interests of the former Minister of Defense
of Georgia and founder of the Milton Group, David Kezerashvili, who is currently hiding in London,” the statement said.
The FSB reports that the fraudulent operation, affected around 100,000 victims from 50 countries, generating daily revenues of up to one million dollars. The agency reported detaining key network figures, including Israeli and Ukrainian citizen Keselman Ya. D., and noting that Israeli and Georgian citizen Todva D. is currently wanted. Law enforcement bodies detained 11 managers and employees of Russian call center offices. The charges include organizing a criminal community, large-scale fraud, and filing false terrorist threat reports.
Kezerashvili previously denied his involvement in any of the Russian allegations stating that: “The Russian government of Georgia has been trying to discredit and neutralize me for 12 years. They have initiated a number of cases in Georgia. They have conducted smear campaigns inside and outside the country. Now, it seems, they have called in their “big brother” for help”.
Disclaimer: The Civil.ge article on the BBC story mentioned here has been removed from our website following the decision of the UK court that ended David Kezerashvili’s legal battle against the BBC for defamation. As a result of the ruling, the BBC had to remove publications related to the allegations from all of its platforms.
This article was updated at 16:00 January 16, 2025 to include the disclaimer.
Also Read:
- 18/11/2024 – Russia Puts Davit Kezerashvili on its International Wanted List
- 05/12/2024 – ECHR Finds “Lack of Objective Impartiality” in Kezerashvili Case
This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)