Investigation launched against store owner in Georgia from whom MP "borrowed" an orange

Case against Tbilisi store owner

In Georgia, the Investigation Service has initiated a case against Vitali Guguchia, the owner of a Tbilisi store, following an incident involving a member of Parliament.

Journalist Natia Beridze from the government propaganda channel POSTV, along with a film crew, visited Guguchia’s home in Samegrelo. A verbal altercation between Beridze and Guguchia escalated into a physical confrontation between the POSTV cameraman and Guguchia.

Guguchia’s store recently gained notoriety. After the May 28 vote on the “foreign agents” law, which is commonly referred to as the “Russian law” in society, an opponent of the law shouted insults at MPs sitting in a car. In response, ruling party supporter MP Japaridze got out of the car, took an orange from Guguchia’s store display, and threw it at the disgruntled citizen.

Later, the MP returned to the store to publicly apologize.

“I took an orange from you and threw it. I’m sorry,” Japaridze said to the store owner. Guguchia replied, “The orange is not the problem; you took away our future.”