The Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) detained one person after a married couple was shot dead near the elevator of a residential building in Tbilisi’s Didube district on the evening of November 11, reportedly amid a property dispute related to the planned eviction of the alleged suspect’s family.
Media reports identified the victims as Soso Sujashvili and Nana Piranishvili. According to TV Pirveli, the killings are reportedly linked to a property dispute between the couple and the detained individual, identified by the broadcaster as 62-year-old Gia Dzlierashvili. The MIA has not disclosed the detainee’s identity.
According to the MIA’s November 12 statement, the investigation established that the suspect “inflicted multiple wounds on two persons, a married couple, in their residential building by firing a firearm, after which he fled the scene.” Both died at the scene from their injuries. The Ministry said the murder was committed under “aggravating circumstances.”
The investigation, the MIA said, also established that “the crime was preceded by circumstances related to property matters, namely the suspect’s failure to fulfill financial obligations.”
The statement said the investigation into the premeditated murder of two persons under aggravating circumstances and the illegal acquisition, possession, and carrying of a firearm is ongoing under Articles 109 and 236 of the Criminal Code of Georgia. The charges carry a sentence of up to 20 years or life imprisonment.
TV Pirveli reported that the dispute concerned an apartment in Tbilisi’s Saburtalo district. According to the broadcaster, Nana Piranishvili, one of the victims, “acquired the property through a forced auction but was unable to evict the Dzlierashvilis [family of the alleged suspect] from the house.”
Georgian media outlets cited a statement by the National Bureau of Enforcement saying it had been mediating between the parties for four years in an attempt to reach an agreement. The eviction process had been postponed several times following negotiations, the agency said.
“The last meeting with the parties was held yesterday, November 11, but no agreement was reached, so the enforcement process was scheduled for November 12 in order to vacate the property in favor of the lawful owner,” the Bureau said.
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