Former high-ranking official Vladimir Khundadze, who is accused of abusing his official powers, has been ordered into pre-trial detention by the court.

Tbilisi City Court Judge Irakli Shvangiradze imposed detention on Vladimir Khundadze in absentia. According to his lawyer, the accused is not in Georgia.

Lawyer Zurab Tabidze told "InterpressNews" that Tbilisi City Court made an illegal decision, which he will appeal. According to him, Vladimir Khundadze went to Turkey for medical treatment about 15-20 days ago and crossed the border without any issues. The lawyer says Khundadze did not even know that charges were to be brought against him.

"The prosecution's motion for detention was wrongly granted. Vladimir Khundadze went to the Republic of Turkey for treatment. There was no prior intent on his part to hide, fail to appear in court, or obstruct the process. Khundadze himself has not been questioned; he did not even know that charges would be filed. He crossed the border normally, without any obstacles, for medical purposes. I presented the court with a certificate from a Turkish medical institution, which the judge did not take into consideration and for some reason considered it to be fake and unreliable. Vladimir Khundadze went to Turkey for treatment approximately 15-20 days ago," Zurab Tabidze stated.

According to the lawyer, Vladimir Khundadze's health condition is such that he is scheduled for surgery on November 3; therefore, the lawyer believes he may not yet be able to communicate with the accused.

As a reminder, according to the Georgian Prosecutor's Office, an investigation conducted by the Investigative Service of the Ministry of Finance established that former Deputy Head of the Revenue Service Vladimir Khundadze had a personal acquaintance with Boris Gogichaishvili, who, together with accomplices, was illegally producing and storing alcoholic beverages — whiskey and vodka — in the city of Gori using foreign brand trademarks.

According to the Prosecutor's Office, to safely import various products needed for producing alcoholic beverages into Georgia, B. Gogichaishvili sought help from Vladimir Khundadze, whose official duties included control and supervision of customs procedures.

Vladimir Khundadze constantly gave Boris Gogichaishvili instructions regarding the appropriate timing for importing and clearing the products through customs, and also indicated how the products should be declared to avoid risks during customs procedures.