Prosecutor’s Office: Man Who Died During Arrest Had Alcohol Intoxication

Georgia’s Prosecutor’s Office (POG) has released a statement about the results of the expertise regarding the high-profile case of Paata Pavliashvili, who died during the arrest in late October.

The POG says the expertise revealed that the reason of the 32 year-old man’s death was the respiratory failure caused by the alcohol intoxication.

“According to the expertise conclusion, the cause of the death of the person was acute respiratory failure caused by alcohol intoxication. The deceased does not have any injuries on his body,” the statement of the POG reads.

Paata Pavliashvili died on October 25 on Nutsubidze Plateau, Tbilisi, while being arrested by two police officers after he allegedly refused to cooperate and verbally abused them.

Eyewitnesses to the incident claim that Pavliashvili repeated several times that he was unwell, yet the police officers ignored him and pushed him to the ground.

The Prosecutor’s Office launched an investigation under Article 116 of the Criminal Code of Georgia into the possible fact of negligence on the side of the police officers. The authorities of the police officers have been suspended pending the results of the investigation.

The POG stated later that the main evidence, footage seized from the patrol inspector’s shoulder camera, did not show the incident and detention process of Paata Pavliashvili.

A number of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) believe there are too many questions surrounding the case, adding it is very suspicious that the shoulder camera recording does not feature the detention process.

By Thea Morrison

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