Ex-PM Garibashvili Indicted on Serious Money-Laundering Charges as Prosecutor Moves for Bail
Georgia’s former Prime Minister, Irakli Garibashvili, has been indicted on serious money-laundering charges, as the Prosecutor General’s Office asked the court to set bail at GEL 1 million as a pretrial restraint, required the ex-official to surrender his passport, and barred him from leaving the country.
Prosecutor General Giorgi Gvarakidze announced at an October 24 briefing that Garibashvili “secretly and covertly engaged in various types of business activities and received large amounts of income of illegal origin” when he served as Georgia’s defense and then prime minister in 2019-2024. “As a public official, he was required to declare both his income and expenses,” Gvarakidze added.
The indictment follows an ongoing investigation targeting former high-level Georgian Dream officials, including Irakli Garibashvili, former State Security Service chief Grigol Liluashvili, former Prosecutor General Otar Partskhaladze, and their associates. Authorities searched their homes on October 17, seizing millions of dollars in cash and valuables, and have arrested several of their associates.
On October 22, a State Security Service official announced that Garibashvili had been questioned at the agency’s Anti-Corruption Service, “fully cooperated” with the investigation, and “admitted to receiving illicit income over the years.”
Prosecutor General’s Briefing
Prosecutor General Giorgi Gvarakidze said Irakli Garibashvili “was prohibited from engaging in any type of entrepreneurial activity or receiving any remuneration other than his official salary” while serving as Georgia’s defense minister from 2019 to 2021 and as prime minister from 2021 to 2024.
“Despite this, while in office, Irakli Garibashvili secretly and covertly engaged in various types of business activities and received particularly large amounts of income of illegal origin,” Gvarakidze said, noting, “As a public official, he was obliged to declare both his income and expenses.”
Giorgi Gvarakidze went on to say that Irakli Garibashvili, in his financial declarations, “provided false information, claiming he received large sums of money each year as gifts from a family member.” He added, “By this means, he artificially created a legal origin for part of a particularly large amount of money – GEL 830,000 [about USD 305,000] — obtained through his illegal participation in private business, which was then brought into legal circulation.”
“In addition, to give a legal form to his unexplained assets, Irakli Garibashvili, in 2023-2024, purchased and registered under the name of a person connected to him two cars worth a total of GEL 463,630, and also, through a family member, purchased for GEL 210,000 a 100% share in a company that owned real estate,” Gvarakidze added.
“In parallel, a total of GEL 3,670,172 was invested in a company registered under the name of his family member.”
“At the same time, to conceal the true nature and origin of his unexplained funds, he converted most of the amount into foreign currency, as a result of which USD 6,500,500 was found and seized on October 17, 2025, during a search of his apartment,” the Prosecutor General added.
Gvarakidze said Garibashvili has been charged under Article 194 of Georgia’s Criminal Code on money laundering, specifically the section concerning the aggravated circumstance of receiving a particularly large amount of income. “The defendant fully pleaded guilty to the charges brought against him.”
Gvarakidze added that the Prosecutor’s Office will file a motion with the court to impose bail of GEL 1 million (about USD 368,000) as a pretrial restraint measure, which, he said, “may be posted either in cash or through real estate.”
Additionally, Gvarakidze said the Prosecutor’s Office will request that Garibashvili surrender his passport and be prohibited from leaving Georgia.
“The criminal investigation is ongoing,” Gvarakidze concluded.
Investigation Targets Former Top Officials
Authorities have targeted several former high-level Georgian Dream officials, including Irakli Garibashvili, former State Security Service chief Grigol Liluashvili, and former Prosecutor General Otar Partskhaladze, after searching their homes and seizing millions of dollars in cash and valuables. Their associates have also been implicated in the investigation.
On October 23, the Prosecutor General’s Office announced the arrest of Andria Liluashvili, an associate of Grigol Liluashvili, on serious money-laundering charges. A day earlier, on October 22, the Office announced the arrest of another Liluashvili associate, Koba Khundadze, on the same charge.
All charges, including the one brought against Garibashvili, carry a sentence of nine to twelve years in prison. The offense also falls under financial crimes that prohibit convicted individuals from leaving the country until damages are fully repaid. The Georgian Dream parliament adopted the amendments into law in early September.
The investigation follows a series of resignations, followed by prosecutions, arrests, and incidents involving former Georgian Dream officials and business allies. While authorities have justified the crackdown as part of their anti-corruption efforts, critics have described it as an internal purge and an act of personal retribution by Bidzina Ivanishvili, Georgian Dream’s billionaire founder.
“Bidzina Ivanishvili has an uncompromising stance on corruption,” Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze told reporters during the October 23 press briefing.
Also Read:
- 12/09/2025 – TI-Georgia: 308 Officials Declared GEL 22 Million in Gifts in One Year
- 27/07/2025 – Ex-Defense Ministry Officials, Ex-Minister’s Relative Arrested on Embezzlement Charges
- 23/07/2025 – Georgian Dream Resignation Streak: Who Left and Why
- 14/07/2025 – Georgian Dream’s Ex-Officials and Business Associates in Hot Water
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