Journalist Eliso Kiladze arrested in call centre case also involving former Georgian prosecutor Otar Partskhaladze
Call centre case in Georgia
Journalist Eliso Kiladze has been arrested in Georgia in connection with an alleged scam call centre case. According to the Georgian Prosecutor’s Office, she is among several people charged, including former chief prosecutor Otar Partskhaladze, who is believed to have fled to Russia, as well as brothers Davit and Giorgi Mikadze, who are also accused of the murder of businessman Levan Jangveladze.
The prosecution said criminal cases had been opened against ten people as part of the call centre investigation, with suspects facing charges of fraud and money laundering carried out by an organised criminal group.
The case concerns a scheme that operated between 2020 and 2023, in which more than 200 foreign nationals were allegedly defrauded of about $9.5m in cryptocurrency.
The accused face between nine and 12 years in prison.
What does the prosecution say?
The prosecution says that between 2020 and 2023, despite the government’s declared fight against fraud, dozens of call centres were operating in the country.
According to witness statements, a significant number of them were controlled by a group of individuals who financed various opposition media outlets with the proceeds and enjoyed the protection of former State Security Service chief Grigol Liluashvili and former prosecutor general Otar Partskhaladze.
A joint investigation by the Georgian Prosecutor General’s Office and the investigative service of the Finance Ministry found that an organised group had been operating in the country with the aim of obtaining illegal financial gains and subsequently laundering the money.
The group allegedly created several legal entities, under which call centres were set up in different districts of Tbilisi, with Russian-, English-, and German-language departments.
According to the investigation, operators lured users to fake trading platforms and encouraged them to invest by promising high returns. They then fraudulently obtained large sums of money.
The illegally acquired assets were distributed across various cryptocurrency wallets through numerous transactions to cover their tracks, and the funds obtained after conversion were used to run the call centres, pay salaries and bonuses, and purchase real estate and movable property.
Prosecutors say some members of the group handled the day-to-day operations, expansion, and financial management of the call centres. Others, including Giorgi and Davit Mikadze, Irakli Sekhniashvili, and Mikheil Chokheli, allegedly used Partskhaladze’s influence to protect the scheme from law enforcement and competitors.
“It is notable that, in cases where a call centre’s activities were exposed or faced such a threat, Eliso Kiladze provided legal cover for the criminal activity by spreading relevant information on various media platforms.
At the same time, to expose competing call centres not under her influence, Eliso Kiladze threatened to publish information about their locations and staff, or did so, and then created favourable conditions for recruitment through blackmail,” the statement said.
The prosecution added that the investigation and international cooperation are ongoing in order to identify other victims and possible participants in the scheme.
Call centre case in Georgia
