The Prosecution Service of Georgia has brought charges against former Prime Minister of Georgia, Irakli Garibashvili, for the laundering of illicit proceeds in particularly large amounts (money laundering).

The investigation conducted by the Anti-Corruption Department of the State Security Service established that Irakli Garibashvili, who held the positions of Minister of Defense and Prime Minister of Georgia between 2019 and 2024, was a public political official within the meaning of the Law of Georgia “On Combating Corruption.” Accordingly, he was prohibited from engaging in any form of entrepreneurial activity or receiving any form of remuneration other than his official salary. Despite this prohibition, during his tenure in public office, Garibashvili covertly and in a disguised manner engaged in various business activities, thereby receiving illicit proceeds in particularly large amounts. As a public official, he was legally obligated to declare both his revenue and expenses.

To conceal the illicit origin of the aforementioned funds and legitimize the illegally obtained revenue, Garibashvili included false information in his asset declarations, falsely claiming that he had received substantial amounts of money each year as “gifts” from a family member. Through this scheme, he artificially created a legal appearance for part of his unlawfully acquired revenue amounting to GEL 830,000, which was subsequently integrated into legal financial circulation.

Furthermore, in order to legitimize additional undocumented assets, between 2023 and 2024, Garibashvili purchased and registered under the name of an associated person two vehicles worth GEL 463,630 in total, and through a family member, acquired 100% of the shares of a company valued at GEL 210,000, which owned real estate assets.

In parallel, a total of GEL 3,670,172 was invested into a limited liability company registered under the name of his family member.

At the same time, the bulk of the illicit funds was converted into foreign currency to conceal its true nature and source. USD 6,500,000 in cash, obtained in this manner, was discovered and seized during a search of Garibashvili’s residence on October 17, 2025.

For the above-mentioned actions, Irakli Garibashvili has been charged under Article 194 §3(c) of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which concerns the laundering of illicit proceeds involving particularly large amounts. The defendant has fully admitted guilt to the charges brought against him.

The Prosecution Service will, within the statutory timeframe, file a motion with the court to impose bail in the amount of GEL 1,000,000 as a preventive measure, which may be secured either by cash deposit or immovable property.

In addition to bail, the Prosecution Service will seek the imposition of additional obligations, including the surrender of Garibashvili’s passport to law enforcement authorities and a ban on leaving the country.

The criminal investigation is underway.