Owner of Georgia’s large telecommunications company, Silknet, Giorgi Ramishvili, has been arrested
Owner of Silknet, Giorgi Ramishvili, arrested in Georgia
On July 6, prominent businessman Giorgi Ramishvili, owner of Silknet – one of Georgia’s largest telecommunications companies – was detained at Tbilisi airport. The Ministry of Internal Affairs stated that the arrest was made as part of an investigation under Article 236 of the Criminal Code, which concerns the illegal possession and carrying of firearms.
Businessman’s family: “He accidentally placed the firearm in his carry-on luggage”
“During a carry-on luggage inspection at the departure terminal of Tbilisi International Airport, a firearm, its magazine, and ammunition were seized from G.R. It was established that the firearm is registered in his name, but he does not have a license to carry it,” the Ministry of Internal Affairs reported.
The detained businessman’s family stated: “This should not be given a political context. It is simply negligence; Giorgi Ramishvili accidentally placed the firearm in his carry-on luggage.”
Charges are expected to be filed on July 7.
Who is Giorgi Ramishvili?
Giorgi Ramishvili is the founder of Silk Road Group. He is also the chairman of the supervisory board of Silknet, which owns the company Euronews Georgia.
Ramishvili was involved in various business projects during the previous government (the presidency of Mikheil Saakashvili), the most notable being the construction of Trump Tower and 16 hotels on the Black Sea coast in the Adjara region.
In 2014, when the current ruling party, Georgian Dream, was already in power, Giorgi Ramishvili founded the Society of Friends of the Georgian Armed Forces together with Mikheil Kavelashvili, who is now the Georgian Dream-elected president.
Ramishvili’s name also appeared in the news in 2018 after a scandal between then-Minister of Sports Levan Kipiani and former prosecutor Otar Partskhaladze. Many sources claimed that Ramishvili, who is Partskhaladze’s best man, helped reconcile them.
Ramishvili was previously arrested for illegal possession of weapons in 2005, during Mikheil Saakashvili’s leadership and the rule of the United National Movement party. He was quickly released and later, in 2012, donated 120,000 lari (about $30,000) to that party. That year marked parliamentary elections and a change of power in Georgia, with Georgian Dream coming to rule.
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