TBILISI, DFWatch–Tbilisi City Court on Tuesday acquitted former Defense Minister Davit Kezerashvili of cognac fraud.
Kezerashvili, who is under house arrest and electronic surveillance in France after being detained at Nice airport last year and then released in February, was charged by Georgian authorities in February, 2013, with assisting a group in producing fake cognac. He was accused of accepting a USD 13 million bribe.
Tuesday, the court acquitted him, but found his brother-in-law, Meir Janashvili, guilty in the same case.
France has refused to extradite the ex-defense minister to Georgia. He also faces three other separate trials in Georgia that are ongoing.
The Prosecutor’s Office this month introduced a third set of charges against him: abuse of power and embezzlement of state money.