Turkish Businessman Seeks Intervention from Erdogan in Chkhartishvili Lawsuit

Turkish businessman Omer Sar, owner of a 5 percent stake in Prometko Georgia and JSCO, the operating companies of Poti Port, is suing Vano Chkhartishvili. According to lawsuits filed with the Investigation Service of the Ministry of Finance of Georgia and the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia in 2013, Omer Sar is demanding damages of USD 3 mln which he believes was taken from these companies between 2008-2009 by Chkhartishvili.

• Sar has claimed Chkhartishvili took USD 3 mln from companies which operate the Port of Poti in yet another example of an attempt by Georgian businessman Chkhartishvili to enrich himself following the death of his former business associate, Badri Patarkatsishvili.

• Speaking to Versia, Mamuka Kakushadze, an attorney acting for Omer Sar, claimed that during negotiations Chkhartishvili admitted liability for the action.

• Despite this, Chkartishvili has refused to come up with a sensible offer to settle and now Sar is now looking to diplomatic channels to solve the dispute which may end up causing serious problems for the Georgian government.

The investigation has been constantly delayed and businessman Omer Sar has now decided take matters into his own hands. Versia can exclusively reveal that Omer Sar is planning to contact the President of Turkey and ask him to help expedite the issue with the Georgian authorities.

Versia previously published articles on the tenders for control over Terminals 3, 4 and 6 in the port of Poti won by Prometco Georgia and JSCO in 2003. According to Omer Sar’s attorney Mamuka Kakushadze, after the Rose Revolution, managers and partners of the company were contacted by people close to the government who demanded a 50 percent share of the company.

“The company’s representatives told us that management would happen according to parity principles, however, after a couple of years, this principle was violated and their share was raised from 50 percent to 66 percent.” Kakushadze told Versia. “They even appointed their own representative, Levan Jgharkava, as the company director.”

“Not even a month had passed since the passing of Badri Patarkatsishvili and they registered this company to a new company, Sonata Alliance Georgia, which is connected to Vano Chkhartishvili,” Kakushadze said.

“With the help of Levan Jgharkava, Chkhartishvili took USD 3 million from the company’s account and transferred it to fictitious contracts. Jgharkava, who was a trusted person for Chkhartishvili, violated both corporate ethics and the law when he took out money from the company’s account, which still has yet to be returned,” Kakushadze said.

As previously reported in GEORGIA TODAY, Sonata Alliance Georgia is the same vehicle used by Chkhartishvili to siphon money from another of Patarkatsishvili’s companies - Georgian Tobacco Production - into Pasquino Management Corp, a Panama registered company owned by Chkhartishvili’s two children. This transaction was recently exposed in a London High Court judgement.

Following the 2012 parliamentary elections which resulted in a change of Government, Turkish businessman Omer Sar filed a lawsuit with the Investigation Service of the Georgian Ministry of Finance. An investigation was begun based on the lawsuit but was prolonged. Correspondingly, in 2013, Omer Sar filed a lawsuit in the Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia.

In a recent interview with Versia. Omer Sar’s attorney Mamuka Kakushadze said:

“We held a press conference regarding this case in 2013. After this, Vano Chkhartishvili’s attorney stated that they were ready to solve this issue through negotiations, without the involvement of a Court of Law. Correspondingly, we arranged meetings with Chkhartishvili’s lawyers at which they admitted to the debt and even gave us written documents which proved that they owe money to Omer Sar. But we haven’t managed to progress our negotiations since then.

“I think this partly happened because the trial in London involving Chkhartishvili and Patarkatsishvili’s family ended. As we know Chkhartishvili lost that case and with it he probably lost every desire to return even a single cent to us.

You’re referring to the USD 3 million which Levan Jgharkava allegedly took from Prometco Georgia and JSCO, right?

Yes, but the USD 3 mln is based on the official exchange rate. Therefore we’re talking about 5 million GEL. This money belongs to the companies and not specifically to Omer Sar.

We demand this debt be paid back to the companies or that they pay us our share of the money. We’re fighting for our own money; if Chkhartishvili doesn’t want to return the money he owes the companies, then he should at least pay us our share.

During the press conference you stated that Chkhartishvili’s representatives offered you some kind of a deal. What where they specifically offering?

Chkhartishvili’s representatives travelled to Istanbul where they offered Omer Sar an amount of money which was less than we were demanding. In short they were bargaining, but Sar, who is fully coordinating with his Georgian partners, declined.

First, the amount was considerably lower and also Sar is requesting this payment with his Georgian partners. Therefore, we declined their offer.

They offered 200 000 GEL, right?

Yes, but this is considerably lower than what we are demanding. Sar is very straight-forward in this case. If he chooses to accept this deal, his Georgian partners will be left with nothing.

Does Levan Jgharkava admit to this debt?

Yes, he admitted to it during the trial. He explained it by saying that he was following the orders of the majority shareholder partner. He said that this caused problems with the minority shareholders but he thought it to be the right thing to do.

At what stage is Sar’s lawsuit now?

It’s probably sitting on one of the shelves in the Prosecutor’s Office. Despite the fact that we contacted the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs about this case and the Turkish Ambassador to Georgia sent a letter to the Prosecutor’s Office, we received the following reply: “The investigation is underway.” Because the investigation is being so blatantly delayed, Omer Sar is planning to contact the President of Turkey and ask him to request from his Georgian colleagues that the case be hastened.

After his press conference in 2013, Versia managed to ask Omer Sar some questions Mr. Sar, did you have a direct relationship with Vano Chkhartishvili, or did you work with Levan Jgharkava?

Of course I knew that the main business partner was Vano Ckhartishvili. Levan Jgharkava was just a trusted person following his orders. I had only met Chkhartishvili’s representative, Radi Ghvamberia, in their own office on Gergeti Street. During the meeting I demanded the return of the money Levan Jgharkava had taken from the company.

As an exchange I offered them the chance to buy out my share. Ghvamberia told me that Jgharkava had taken the money and promised me that it would be returned, but unfortunately the promise was not kept. That is why I went to the Georgian authorities so they could investigate this case and prove the truth.

You only met the middleman and not Chkhartishvili, right ?

Yes I only met with Chkhartishvili’s representative Rati Ghvamberia.

It’s a common practice for a middleman to be trusted by businessmen, but they frequently abuse this trust. When the problems were evident, did you meet with Chkhartishvili?

No, I only talked with the representative. But Rati Ghvamberia is not only a middleman. He’s Vano Chkhartishvili’s plenipotentiary representative who managed Sonata Alliance Georgia.

Three years into the case, we found out that despite the fact that the investigation has begun, it is being delayed by the Prosecutor’s Office for some reason.

Maia Misheladze