Day: January 9, 2026
The family of teacher Giga Avaliani, who died in October weeks after being assaulted, is demanding the resignation of the prosecutor general, following repeated calls for broader accountability and tougher charges against the minors allegedly involved in the incident.
The family of Avaliani, who was 28 at the time of the assault, demanded the resignation of Giorgi Gvarakidze, Prosecutor General, during the January 8 rally in Tbilisi, following weeks of protests led by the victim’s mother, Eka Kupatadze. Family lawyer Zaza Khatiashvili said that if Gvarakidze does not resign by January 17, another rally will be held and the mother will launch a hunger strike.
A day before the rally, on January 7, the Prosecutor General’s Office issued a statement, saying it was “once again ready to meet with the family members of Giga Avaliani at any time and to explain in detail the grounds for each investigative action, the legal classification of the charges against the detained individuals, and, if new evidence and legal grounds emerge, to launch prosecution against other individuals.”
The family, however, does not trust the prosecution, accusing it of conducting an ineffective investigation that they believe aims to protect the perpetrators rather than punish them. The family says the crime is more serious than currently classified and that more perpetrators were involved than those now under arrest.
Case Details
Giga Avaliani, a 28-year-old doctor and private tutor, was attacked late at night on October 1, 2025, near the entrance to his apartment block in Tbilisi. He was hospitalized with critical head injuries and fell into a coma, and died on October 24.
On October 19, police detained a minor, Aleksandre Gabashvili, who allegedly assaulted Giga Avaliani, and on October 26 detained another minor, Giorgi Rikadze, who allegedly recorded a video of the assault. Investigators say the conflict stemmed from Gabashvili’s jealousy over his girlfriend, who was being tutored in math by Avaliani. The Prosecutor General’s Office said Gabashvili “punched” Avaliani in the forehead, while his companion, Rikadze, recorded the incident on a mobile phone.
Following Avaliani’s death, Gabashvili was charged under Article 117, Part 2, of the Criminal Code of Georgia, intentional infliction of serious harm to health resulting in death, punishable by five to eight years in prison. Giorgi Rikadze was charged under Article 376, Part 1, failure to report a crime that is being prepared or has been committed, punishable by two to six years in prison.
Amid protests by the victim’s mother, who publicly criticized the investigation and vowed to pursue accountability to the end, the prosecution detained two more minors on December 20. They were also charged under Article 376, failure to report a serious crime. All are currently in pretrial detention.
On November 19, the Prosecutor General’s Office issued another statement, citing forensic findings and saying Giga Avaliani died from a “closed blunt craniocerebral injury, including a complete fracture of the right frontal bone.” Prosecutors previously said Gabashvili punched Avaliani. The family questions whether a bare punch could have caused such deadly injuries.
Avaliani’s family disputes the prosecution’s account, insisting the attack involved multiple minors and amounted to group violence. The victim’s mother, Eka Kupatadze, has alleged that several individuals, including a 16-year-old girl whom Avaliani had been tutoring, played a role in planning the attack.
The family is demanding the arrest of all those involved, that the charge be reclassified as “group violence,” a more severe offense, and full access to the case materials. The Prosecutor General’s Office has repeatedly said it has refrained from publicly discussing certain details of the case, citing the involvement of minors.
“I will fight until everyone is brought before the court,” said Giga Avaliani’s mother, Eka Kupatadze, at a December 22 rally.
“I want to be the last mother in Georgia whose child was killed.”
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