The Prosecutor’s Office of Georgia [POG] detained 10 persons on charges of illegally importing drugs in particularly large quantities and engaging in money laundering, following a complex investigation in collaboration with the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

According to the agency, the defendants face potential sentences from 15 to 20 years, or life imprisonment.

“In 2022, citizen of Iran established an organized criminal group to illegally import drugs and launder the illicit income. He allegedly operated restaurants and night clubs at 3 different locations in Tbilisi, funding them with the money earned through narcotics sales (POG didn’t disclose the names of the clubs).

The nightclubs served as hubs for drug distribution and laundering illicit funds. The members of the organized group fraudulently inflated the income of the clubs.

In October 2023, the defendants allegedly earned GEL 3,000,000 in 5 days, concealing the origin of the funds derived from drug sales. Part of the money was deposited into the bank account of one of the members of the criminal group at different times. This person carried out international money transfers and cryptocurrency exchange operations.

One of the group’s criminal associates tried to smuggle more than 25 kg of dried cannabis into Georgia from Iran in June 2024.

The defendants obtained movable and immovable property valued at approximately GEL 3,000,000 with illicit income. These properties has been sequestrated, and pledged to work towards transferring them to the state”, - reads the statement of POG.