TBILISI, November 11 – Prosecutors in Georgia have filed criminal charges against five people over the collapse of a major bridge that is part of the East-West corridor and one of the country’s largest infrastructure projects, BPN reports.
Among those charged is former Deputy Head of the Roads Department Levan Kupatashvili, accused of abuse of power and large-scale embezzlement of state funds. The Prosecutor’s Office said the case caused more than 16 million lari (around 5.7 million USD) in damage to the state budget.
The 801-meter bridge along the Samtredia-Grigoleti highway, crossing the Rioni River near Samtredia, partially collapsed in February 2023 when one of its support pillars gave way, bringing down two spans. The project was part of a 52-kilometer highway linking Samtredia to Grigoleti, designed to modernize Georgia’s Black Sea transport corridor.
According to the Prosecutor’s Office, Kupatashvili faces up to 11 years in prison if convicted. Two managers from the Azerbaijani construction company Akkord, which built the failed bridge, were also charged in absentia with fraud, forgery, and misappropriation of large sums. These offenses carry a penalty of up to nine years in prison.
Akkord, registered in Azerbaijan with a Georgian subsidiary established in 2009, has taken part in 14 state tenders, winning two worth a total of 13.5 million lari. Its Georgian branch was headed by Azerbaijani national Telman Huseinov.
An official investigation commissioned by the government in late 2023 concluded that the bridge’s foundation, known as the “rostwerk,” or upper part of the pile cap, had been constructed improperly and did not meet design specifications. The experts also found “numerous defects” and poor-quality work in other parts of the structure.
Akkord was not the first company to fail on this highway project. The initial contractor, Ukrainian firm Road Building ALTCOM, was dismissed in 2014 for not fulfilling its obligations. Akkord took over in 2018 but also saw its contract terminated before completion.
Reconstruction of the Rioni bridge is now being carried out by Georgian firm Caucasus Road Project, which plans to finish by 2026. Roughly 30 kilometers of the 52-kilometer highway are already open to traffic.
