A former aide to Georgian de facto leader Bidzina Ivanishvili is being held as a “personal prisoner” of the billionaire politician after being convicted of stealing $43 million worth of bitcoin (BTC).
Giorgi Bachiashvili, who had previously been Ivanishvili’s “right-hand man,” was convicted in May 2025 and sentenced to 11 years in prison for misappropriating 8,986.86 BTC and laundering the funds.
However, according to Bachiashvili’s mother, her son is the victim of a “personal vendetta” by Ivanishvili who she has called “evil,” and says is without humanity or empathy.
She also claims that Bachiashvili has been violently beaten in his cell and is now the “personal prisoner” of Ivanishvili, Georgia’s ex-prime minister, who still reportedly controls the country.
“My only hope is the European institutions. Giorgi is now Ivanishvili’s personal prisoner. I ask, for someone to help, please,” she said.
According to Georgia’s Prosecution Office, Bachiashvili “attempted to to cover up the illegal origin of the misappropriated assets, hid and disguised the true source of their origin through various financial transactions and actions, thereby allowing him to freely dispose of and use the illegally obtained assets.”
He then fled to Abu Dhabi mid-way through his trial but was arrested after an interview with The Guardian in which he claimed that he was being punished by Ivanishvili for his criticism of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
His lawyers say he was blindfolded and flown back to Georgia while being taunted for believing he could flee from Ivanishvili.
One source close to Bachiashvili told the BBC that he was extradited “with no lawyer, no trial, absolutely nothing.”
Indeed, Transparency International described Bachiashvili’s conviction as being “devoid of both legal and factual grounds.”
Georgia authorities target Bachiashvili’s family
On the day that Ramazashvili first publicly referred to her son as Ivanishvili’s personal prisoner, the Georgian government froze bank accounts belonging to the pair, and to Bachiashvili’s father.
Read more: UK mirrors US sanctions against Russian crypto networks
Now, Georgia’s Prosecutor’s Office is expanding its investigation to determine whether or not his family was part of the BTC misappropriation.
The Guardian reports that Georgia’s justice system is now under the political control of Ivanishvili, while the country has descended into an autocracy.
