TI Questions Evidence in Elisashvili Court Archive Arson Case

Transparency International – Georgia is analyzing the case of arson at the Tbilisi City Court archive against Aleko Elisashvili. According to the organization, the prosecution has not presented sufficient evidence to prove either that Elisashvili committed this act or that he had a terrorist aim.

According to a publication released by the organization on October 13, the only piece of evidence from the prosecution's materials that directly links Elisashvili to the scene is an odorological expert opinion. According to it, the odor trace samples taken from the territory of the court building are identical to the sample taken from Elisashvili.

Transparency International – Georgia believes the opinion does not contain sufficient information about the research method and process, therefore its reliability and legality are in doubt. According to the organization, the opinion does not show how many dogs took part in the research, how many times the samples were compared, whether the results of all comparisons matched each other, and under what conditions the procedure was carried out. The opinion is also not accompanied by photo or video material documenting the research.

The organization states that the odorological expert examination cannot confirm that Elisashvili himself set fire to the building. According to its explanation, the possible identity of the samples by itself does not establish who committed the crime, and additional evidence is needed for this.

According to TI, it was not possible to identify Elisashvili from the video recordings in the case. According to the conclusion of the habitoscopic expert examination, the image of the person shown in the video recordings is unsuitable for identification, and in some photos only a presumed recognition is possible.

The organization also addresses the chronology of the investigation. According to its information, the investigation into the fire began on May 4, 2025, but for more than eight months afterward, according to the case materials, no investigative actions were carried out. In January 2026, the police received so-called operative information and questioned five people, whose recordings from cameras installed near their homes were later added to the case. According to the organization, the factually identical accounts of these persons raise questions about the legality of obtaining and using the video recordings.

TI believes that the prosecution's video recordings and operative information received from anonymous sources do not confirm that Elisashvili committed the crime. The organization also writes that the biological expert examination ordered in the case was not presented at the time the publication was released.

Regarding the terrorist aim, the organization notes that the case contains no evidence that would confirm that Elisashvili set fire to the court building in order to intimidate the population or destabilize the judicial authority.

Elisashvili has been charged under the first part of Article 323 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which provides for imprisonment of up to 15 years. According to the prosecution, "in accordance with a pre-prepared plan, Alexander Elisashvili, armed with items necessary for carrying out a terrorist act and with his face covered by a mask", arrived at the court archive on May 4, 2025, climbed onto a ventilation pipe and tried to open a window, which he failed to do. He then went down the stairs and, using the window, threw an ignited substance containing petroleum product into the archive room, as a result of which a fire broke out in the room.

According to the agency, Elisashvili returned again to the window located next to the second archive room and, upon climbing onto the ventilation pipe, set fire to the window and the wires.

Aleko Elisashvili stated that he did not do what the prosecution charged him with and did not set fire in the court archive on May 4, 2025. The politician has been convicted in the case of attempting to commit a terrorist act and has been sentenced to 13 years.