Prosecutors reject plea deal for Georgia’s former defence minister
Georgia’s prosecution service has refused to offer plea agreements to former Defence Minister Juansher Burchuladze, who is under investigation, his brother-in-law Vasili Mkheidze, and former deputy Giorgi Khaindrava.
At a court hearing on 8 April, prosecutors called for all three defendants to be convicted.
A plea agreement is a deal between the defendant and the prosecution, under which the defendant admits guilt or cooperates with the investigation in exchange for a more lenient sentence.
A plea agreement will be concluded with only one defendant — former head of the Defence Ministry’s procurement department, Vladimir Gudushauri.
According to prosecutor Ani Lekiashvili, Gudushauri cooperated with the investigation from the outset of the case, while Burchuladze applied for a deal only on 26 March, at the final stage of the proceedings.
Case details
Juansher Burchuladze and his associates are accused of embezzling 1,333,728 lari (about $493,000) from the state budget. The case concerns the purchase of a CT scanner for a military hospital, which investigators say was bought at an artificially inflated price.
Burchuladze is also charged with money laundering. Prosecutors allege that he used illicit proceeds to purchase a residential property and a plot of land in Spain worth €544,000.
According to the prosecution, assets worth around 2.5 million lari (approximately $925,000) have already been seized from the former minister.
The case also includes a separate episode involving Vasili Mkheidze, related to an illegal cigarette factory set up in the city of Gori. Investigators say excise-free products worth more than 2 million lari (around $740,000) were seized at the site.
Juansher Burchuladze, who served as defence minister from 2021 to 2024, denies the charges. He faces between nine and 12 years in prison if convicted.
Case of Georgia’s former defence minister
