Tbilisi City Court Judge Nino Tarashvili sentenced former head of the State Security Service of Georgia (SSSG), Grigol Liluashvili, to 13 years in prison after finding him guilty in four episodes related to alleged bribery.
Liluashvili, who headed the SSSG from 2019 until stepping down in April 2025, was arrested on December 23, 2025, in connection with multiple alleged corruption schemes.
The first case dates back to 2022, when Liluashvili allegedly accepted a USD 1 million bribe from Turkish investor Cagatay Ulker through former First Deputy Economy Minister Romeo Mikautadze. According to the prosecution, the payment was made in exchange for lobbying efforts to facilitate the signing of a memorandum of cooperation on the construction of wind power plants.
Another 2022 bribery case alleges that Liluashvili, again acting through Mikautadze, solicited and received GEL 1.5 million from businessman Giorgi Khazhalia in return for assistance related to gasification tenders.
The third episode concerns alleged protection of part of the network of scam call centers operating in 2021 and 2023. Prosecutors accused Liluashvili of shielding part of the network and receiving approximately USD 1.365 million in bribes through his relative, Sandro Liluashvili.
The fourth conviction stems from allegations that Liluashvili abused his office and took bribes to protect Kakhaber Gvantseladze, the former head of Tbilisi City Hall’s Agency for the Management of Preschool Institutions. The prosecutors alleged that Gvantseladze received large kickbacks from businesses connected to procurement contracts for kindergartens.
Liluashvili stepped down as SSSG chief on April 2, 2025. At the time, Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced him as the nominee to lead the newly created Ministry of Regional Development. Two days later, however, Kobakhidze said the nomination had been withdrawn after consultations with Liluashvili revealed “different approaches” to the ministry’s principles of operation, including its personnel policy.
Liluashvili’s arrest came amid Georgian Dream’s declared anti-corruption drive. Before his arrest, the Prosecutor’s Office said it had searched the homes of several former officials, including jailed ex-Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, former Prosecutor General Otar Partskhaladze, Liluashvili, and eight of their associates as part of investigations into multiple criminal cases.
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