Murder, trial, new trial: one more scandal around a high-profile case in Abkhazia
Photo: Ibragim Chkadua
Another scandalous turn of events in the most resonant murder case in Abkhazia.
Committed in 2012, the crime itself has drawn particular attention-Nodik Kvitsinia, a member of the Abkhazian Parliament, orchestrated a murder of the Russian businessman, Sergey Klimantovich and his partner, Oksana Skarednova.
On October 28, 2016, 5 individuals involved in the case were sentenced to 13-20 years in prison.
And here’s the new turn of developments-Abkhazian Supreme Court’s Cassation Board, chaired by Judge Temur Tarba, as well as Judges Oksana Pilia and Henry Gamisonia, annulled the aforesaid ruling and ordered the criminal case retrial.
Photo: Anaid Gogorian
This stirred the public’s immediate and angry reaction.
Aleksey Lomia, ex- General Prosecutor, was the first who reported about the aforesaid court ruling on his social media page. His position with regard to this issue was very emotional:
The entire context of a new ruling in this case looks like a real detective story. None of the reporters or editors were notified in advance that the session had been set to consider a cassation appeal filed by the defence. Moreover, due to heavy and long-lasting snowfall in Abkhazia, all trials were postponed to later dates.
An unexpectedly convened Cassation Board session on the murder of Klimantovich and his partner came as a real surprise. The national TV crew was invited the very last moment to be read the verdict that had been already passed.
After the full text of the Cassation Board ruling is made public, the prosecution will be given 10 days to appeal the verdict. If the appeal goes through, it will be considered by the Supreme Court Presidium.
Public rage
Social media discussions or, to be more precise, condemnation of the court verdict and the judge who passed such an unpopular judgment, for a few days completely overshined the most popular March parliamentary election theme.
The word ‘shame’ has become a determinant for the tone of most of the comments.
Natalia, Sergey Klemantovich’s widow, left the following comment under ex- General Prosecutor Aleksey Lomia’s post:
Temur Tarba, who annulled the verdict, is an active social media user. He regularly posts his poems that are quite popular. After a flurry of accusations with regard to the court ruling, Tarba left a comment, saying the defendants would still stay in custody despite the repeal of verdict.
Sergey Klemantovich, a Russian businessman, headed the ‘El Petroleum-Abkhazia’ company, dealing with scrap metal processing and gravel stockpiling. In early September 2012, Sergey Klemantovich and his partner, Oksana, crossed into the territory of Abkhazia and then suddenly disappeared. A little over a year later, in October 2013, their bodies were found in a disused well, in Adzubzha village, Ochamchira district.
The General Prosecutor’s Office brought charges against 5 individuals suspected in committing the murder: Nodik Kvitsinia, an active member of the Abkhazian Parliament; as well as 4 of his accomplices – Ramin Khmail, Ahra Gopia, Jumber Bigvava and Aslan Tsvizhba.
The court found that the murder was orchestrated by Kvitsinia, who had had business ties with Klemantovich. In particular, the Russian businessman bought several hectares of coastal land from the MP and, according to Kvitsinia, he failed to pay the whole sum. The first instance court found that the rest 4 individuals involved in the case had been hired by Nodik Kvitsinia. They abducted the businessman and his partner, whereas a few days later they killed them and threw their bodies into the well.
As for the MP, whom the first instance court sentenced to 16 years in close confinement, he is currently on the run. Kvitsinia is reportedly hiding in Georgia. He wasn’t taken into custody during the investigation and judicial proceedings, because despite the fact that he was deprived of MP immunity by Parliament, the latter didn’t sanction his arrest.
Kvitsinia didn’t show up for October 28, 2016 trial, when the judgment was passed in the Russian businessman and his partner murder case. His lawyer produced a certificate that Kvitsinia had been taken to hospital. However, as it turned out later, having anticipated what the verdict might be, he had fled in advance.
