Teenagers Accused of School Murders Expected to Be Sentenced Today

Two teenagers accused of stabbing to death two 16-year-old boys during a fight at a school in Tbilisi are expected to be sentenced at 5 pm today.

The teens, known as GB and GJ, are suspected of killing fellow pupils David Saralidze and Levan Dadunashvili on 1 December 2017 at Tbilisi’s #51 school.

On 31 May 2018, the accused teenagers were partially acquited by Tbilisi Court. One of the defendants was found guilty of murdering Levan Dadunashvili, whilst the other was found guilty of attempted murder of David Saralidze.

The verdict caused outrage in Tbilisi and sparked large protests. Saralidze’s father, Zaza Saralidze held a demonstration which led to the resignation of the Prosecutor General Irakli Shotadze and held a hunger strike in front of parliament.  

The high profile case drew widespread criticism and accusations of corruption as one of the father’s of the accused students worked at the Prosecutor’s Office.

Transparency International Georgia criticized the improper handling of the case: ‘For many years, society has had questions regarding biased and inadequate investigations of high-profile cases, resulting in a lack of trust towards the institution,’ read their statement.

The session sentencing the juveniles will take place at the Tbilisi Court of Appeals.

By Amy Jones

Photo source - IOD