Two Protesters Each Sentenced to 4.5 Years in Jail on Molotov Cocktail Allegations
Two more protesters, Temur Zasokhashvili and Davit Lomidze, have each been sentenced to four years and six months in prison on charges of assaulting police officers, marking the tenth and eleventh jail terms handed down to individuals arrested in connection with Georgian protests since November 2024.
Tbilisi City Court Judge Nino Galustashvili announced the verdict on August 8. Prosecutors alleged that the two men threw so-called Molotov cocktails during the early days of the protest dispersals, damaging a water-cannon vehicle. Zasokhashvili (39) and Lomidze (53) pleaded not guilty, with their defense citing a lack of neutral evidence and arguing that it was impossible to identify the suspects.
Zasokhashvili and Lomidze were detained on December 1, 2024, during the early days of the pro-EU protests, initially on administrative charges. Both allege they were severely beaten by police upon arrest, with Lomidze’s pre-existing spinal condition reportedly worsening to the point that he required additional surgery while in custody.
They were later charged with the criminal offense of assaulting police officers, with prosecutors alleging they threw petrol bombs at water-cannon vehicles, causing damage. The charges carry a prison sentence of four to seven years. The prosecution’s case relied on low-resolution video footage showing two hooded individuals allegedly committing the crime, as well as the testimonies of two riot police officers – Badri Tatanashvili and Avtandil Potskhverashvili – who reportedly claimed they were able to identify the suspects from memory.
Interior Ministry investigators and prosecutors further claimed that, upon their detention, the suspects confessed to the crime and identified themselves in the video footage.
The defendants and their lawyers contested these claims, arguing that the reports were fabricated and that the defendants’ signatures had been obtained through deception. The defense maintained that it was impossible to identify the suspects from the video footage and equally implausible for the police witnesses to remember their faces during the dispersal. The lawyers also noted that no habitoscopic analysis was conducted to determine whether the individuals in the video were indeed Lomidze and Zasokhashvili.
The verdict comes as no police officer has been held accountable despite numerous documented abuses during dispersals. Dozens of protesters, however, remain in jail on criminal charges, convicted or awaiting their verdicts.
Lomidze and Zasokhashvili are the tenth and eleventh individuals to receive criminal prison sentences in connection with the ongoing protests. Nine other people include journalist Mzia Amaghlobeli, Anri Kakabadze, Anri Kvaratskhelia, Saba Jikia, Giorgi Mindadze, Mate Devidze, Denis Kulanin, Daniel Mumladze, and Guram Khutashvili.
Seven more remain in prison after being convicted over their involvement in the spring 2024 protests against the foreign agents law, including Omar Okribelashvili, Saba Meparishvili, and Pridon Bubuteishvili, who were convicted in January, Davit Koldari, Giorgi Kuchuashvili, and Giorgi Okmelashvili, who were convicted in February, as well as Irakli Megvinetukhutsesi, convicted in December.
Eight individuals, including six active opposition politicians, were recently sentenced to prison terms of several months for defying the Georgian Dream investigative commission.
So far, only one person – doctor Giorgi Akhobadze – has been acquitted of criminal charges linked to the protests and activism, in a surprise verdict that found him not guilty on serious drug charges.
Politpatimrebi.ge, a civic platform documenting the cases of detainees, currently lists over 60 persons who were jailed in 2024-2025 and are considered political prisoners.
Also Read:
- 07/08/2025 – EU Condemns Mzia Amaghlobeli’s Arrest, Calls to Release ‘Unjustly Detained’
- 29/07/2025 – Detained Protesters Say They Are Promised Pardon If They Apologize
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