Giorgi Papashvili, accused of murdering Tamaz Mtivlishvili, sentenced to life imprisonment

Court Verdict

Judge Nino Galustashvili sentenced Giorgi Papashvili, accused of the murder of 22-year-old Tamaz Mtivlishvili, to life imprisonment. During the court hearing, the defendant refused to make a final statement. Publika+3

Details of the crime and other convicts

Sources provide conflicting information regarding the date of the murder: according to publika, the incident occurred on February 18, 2025, while interpressnews and mtavari-fb write that Tamaz Mtivlishvili was killed on February 17. According to interpressnews, the deceased was found several days later in Giorgi Papashvili's residence, and the murder was committed with particular cruelty, including the use of a vegetable cutting board. Publika+2

Five individuals have been held criminally liable in connection with the case. Veriko Kapanadze, Saba Robakidze, and Luka Gvenetadze have already been convicted for failure to report a crime. According to interpressnews, Bayram Ali Huseynov was sentenced in absentia to 7 years, Luka Gvenetadze to 5 years, and Saba Robakidze and Veriko Kapanadze to 4.3 years each. Giorgi Papashvili, who was extradited from Russia on February 2, 2026, was tried for premeditated murder under aggravating circumstances. Furthermore, according to interpressnews, Bayram Ali Huseynov has not yet been arrested, while according to publika, an international search is ongoing for one more person. Interpressnews+1