Two minors were detained and charged with preparing to organize and participate in group violence over an alleged plot to attack a school in Tbilisi, facing six to nine years in prison if convicted.
“An investigation conducted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs established that the defendants met through social media in April and May 2026 and planned to organize and participate in an attack on a school involving vandalism and violence,” Georgia’s Prosecutor’s Office said in an October 25 statement.
“Specifically, they selected a particular school in Tbilisi, studied its internal layout and decided to place a fake explosive device in front of the school,” the statement said, adding that the plan would have allowed them to “enter the school unnoticed, vandalize its premises, and use weapons to inflict injuries on people inside.”
According to prosecutors, the minors purchased various items and made preparations to carry out the attack, but “were unable to carry out their plan because their activities were uncovered by law enforcement officers.”
According to Sandro Tskharo [“Reliable Source”], a recently established local independent media outlet, the two 14-year-olds communicated through video calls, Telegram and TikTok. The outlet cited the father of one of the detainees as saying that the teenagers had discussed the 2011 terrorist attack in Norway and feature films based on real events depicting acts of violence.
The father also told Sando Tskaro that law enforcement officers seized a starter pistol, ammunition, pepper spray, gloves, a helmet and a knife during a search.
The minors were charged under Articles 18 and 225 of Georgia’s Criminal Code, covering preparation to commit a crime and organizing or participating in group violence.
One of the minors has been remanded in custody as a pretrial measure, while prosecutors said they would ask a court to impose a pretrial measure on the second defendant “within the timeframe prescribed by law.”
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