Investigation Launched Into Alleged Police Brutality in Gori
By Messenger Staff
Thursday, May 28, 2026
The Prosecutor's Office of Georgia announced on May 27 that it has launched an investigation into allegations that police officers violently exceeded their official powers during an arrest in Gori.
The probe was initiated under the Criminal Code of Georgia concerning the abuse of official powers through violence. The charge carries a potential penalty of five to eight years of imprisonment, along with a temporary ban on holding office.
Lasha Abisonashvili, one of the two men targeted by the officers, told Kartli News that the confrontation began when a police vehicle drove closely toward his friend, who was returning from a work break.
According to Abisonashvili, his friend works at the Bank of Georgia and waved his hand after the car was driven toward him, asking the officers, "what are you doing?" Abisonashvili stated that when his friend mentioned calling a lawyer, the officers apparently became more aggressive.
"They beat me and my friend badly. They 'sent the car after him,' and that led to an argument, after which they beat him severely. I was trying to intervene, and then they beat me too," Abisonashvili said. "My friend is 28-29 years old, he had left work during his break and was walking back to work. The conversation went like: 'Why did you drive the car at me?' Then the fight started and I came over. It was just the two of us."
Abisonashvili explicitly denied police claims that a bladed weapon was involved, adding that he suffered head and leg injuries before being released. "After the fight they let me go. My friend was probably taken to the police station. I think he is in a very bad condition," he added, noting that arriving officers initially appeared to de-escalate before joining in on the assault and shouting verbal insults. "If I was guilty too, why was I released?"
The official investigation was opened shortly after the local media outlet Kartlis Ambebi published video footage from the Kombinati settlement in Gori. The recording shows roughly ten law enforcement officers approaching the men on a grassland area, forcibly dragging one away while kicking him multiple times, and repeatedly kicking a second individual who was lying on the ground.
Responding to the footage, Tamar Oniani, Chairperson of the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association, characterized the incident as a direct consequence of a lack of institutional accountability.
"The footage showing police violence in Gori is extremely disturbing. This is what happens when accountability for cases of torture and physical abuse committed by police officers is merely superficial," Oniani wrote on social media. She argued that impunity triggers a chain reaction, meaning such occurrences "can no longer be considered accidental."
Oniani pointed out that formal investigations by the Prosecutor's Office previously led to the creation of an independent Special Investigative Service, a reform sparked by more than 20 cases brought before the European Court of Human Rights under the Tsintsabadze group judgments. She criticized the decision to dissolve that independent service.
"In 2025, when this service was abolished, what indicator existed to prove that it was no longer necessary? The primary function of the Special Investigative Service was precisely to fight police violence. Its abolition has further strengthened the sense of impunity. That is why, when we bring such cases before the Strasbourg Court, we also challenge this institutional deterioration," Oniani stated.
When asked about the incident, Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze described the footage as "absolutely unacceptable," adding that state agencies "should have and will have an appropriate response."
The Public Defender's Office also issued a statement condemning the incident, stating that it "condemns all forms of unlawful actions by police officers, especially incidents of ill-treatment." The ombudsman called on the Prosecutor's Office to conduct an "objective and effective investigation" to hold all responsible personnel accountable.
