Nika Melia, one of the leaders of the Coalition for Change, was found guilty by the court for splashing water on Judge Irakli Shvangiradze.

By the decision of Tbilisi City Court Judge Elene Goguadze, he was sentenced to 1 year and 6 months in prison.

The judge explained why he did not use a fine as a form of punishment. As Goguadze noted, there was a recurrence of the crime. According to Goguadze, when there is a recurrence, one year should be added to the sentence.

For information, Nika Melia was charged under Part 2 of Article 366 of the Criminal Code of Georgia (insulting a judge), which provides for up to 2 years of imprisonment as a form and measure of punishment.

Nika Melia was detained on administrative charges by the police on May 29 of this year. The next day, his trial was held on the case of failure to appear before the temporary investigative commission of the parliament, during which Melia splashed water on Judge Zviad Shvangiradze.

Nika Melia was convicted of failing to comply with the request of the temporary investigative commission of the parliament. He was sentenced to 8 months of imprisonment and was banned from holding office for 2 years. In addition, a fine of 25,000 GEL - a non-executable penalty of 2019- - has been added to the sentence.