Employees of the Investigative Service of the Ministry of Finance of Georgia, in coordination with the district prosecutor’s offices of Shida Kartli and Mtskheta-Mtianeti, detained one person as a result of operational and investigative measures on charges of stealing natural gas from a main pipeline belonging to LLC “Georgian Gas Transportation Company,” a company founded with 100% state ownership.

According to the Investigative Service of the Ministry of Finance, the investigation established that the accused had owned a bread factory in the Shida Kartli region for many years, where the population of the region was supplied with bakery products.

On the territory adjacent to the bread factory, the accused had set up an improvised car gas-filling station and refueled dozens of vehicles with gas on a daily basis.

In order to illegally obtain significant material benefits and avoid expenses necessary for such commercial activity, the accused, at an unspecified time and under unclear circumstances, carried out an illegal connection to two main pipelines belonging to LLC “Georgian Gas Transportation Company.” Through this method, in 2024–2025, he secretly appropriated state-owned natural gas worth 4,347,000 GEL.

The crime committed by the accused is provided for under Part 4 of Article 177 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which stipulates a prison sentence ranging from six to ten years.

Operational and investigative activities are ongoing to determine the exact amount of stolen natural gas, identify and expose other members of the organized criminal group, as well as investigate the accused’s large-scale tax evasion.