Vladimer Tsabadze, who was illegally detained by Russian occupation forces in the occupied territory near the village of Dirbi in Kareli municipality, has been freed and is now in territory controlled by the central government. The information was released by the State Security Service of Georgia.
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Based on information from the agency, both the "hotline" of the European Union Monitoring Mission (EUMM) and "all relevant tools at the disposal of the central government" were actively utilized in the process of securing the release of Vladimer Tsabadze from illegal detention. This issue was raised during meetings held within the framework of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism, as well as in international discussions in Geneva.
The occupied Tskhinvali regime also reported the release of Vladimer Tsabadze. According to the State Security Committee of the de facto Republic of South Ossetia, a citizen serving a sentence for cigarette smuggling was handed over to the Georgian side.
The de facto State Security Committee stated that 33-year-old Vladimer Tsabadze, a resident of the village of Satsikhuri in Kareli municipality, was arrested on April 20, 2024, in the Znauri (occupied Kornisi) district for attempting to transport tobacco products across the "state border." On August 13, the so-called district court of Znauri found him guilty and sentenced him to prison in a correctional colony under the common regime.
"On Monday, due to the expiration of the sentence, the offender was released and handed over to the Georgian side according to the established procedure," the so-called State Security Committee said.
At least 11 Georgian citizens are currently held in Tskhinvali's prison and detention center.
