Georgia Ex-Pm Says Threatened to Inform on Saakashvili
Former Georgian Prime Minister Vano Merabishvili said Tuesday that prosecutors had tried to force him to inform on close ally ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili.
Merabishvili is the highest-ranking Saakashvili ally to be detained following a slew of investigations since Saakashvili's United National Movement party lost out to a coalition headed by billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili at parliamentary elections in 2012.
Merabishvili-- who is currently detained on abuse of power and graft charges -- said he was hooded and taken from his cell at the weekend and told by the chief prosecutor to divulge information about bank accounts belonging to Saakashvili.
"He gave me an ultimatum -- that I would find myself in a very bad situation unless I help prosecutors," Merabishvili told a court hearing.
"I stated clearly that it is ridiculous to accuse Saakashvili of corruption," Merabishvili said.
He said he was also asked for information on the death of former prime minister Zurab Zhvania who purportedly died of carbon monoxide poisoning in 2005.
Current premier Irakli Garibashvili promptly dismissed the allegations as "a provocation aimed at discrediting Georgia's current government".
Speculation is rife that U.S. ally Saakashvili could face prosecution after his immunity ended when he stepped down from power last month at the end of his second and final term at the helm of the ex-Soviet state.
Western officials have expressed concern over any investigations that could be perceived as being politically motivated.
Source: Agence France Presse
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