On December 23, 2025, the Prosecutor's Office of Georgia indicted the former head of the State Security Service, Grigol Liluashvili, for taking a particularly large amount of bribe.

The media had been talking about Liluashvili's alleged corruption crimes for years. However, it was only after Liluashvili left office that the months-long criminal prosecution of his relatives and friends ended with Liluashvili himself being charged.

The former head of the State Security Service has been charged with a crime that had been repeatedly exposed through journalistic investigations. It should be noted that Grigol Liluashvili sued the Main Channel and Formula TV, the authors of a TV story about patronizing call centers, in 2022. The court run by the clan found slander against the head of the State Security Service. However, in 2025, it was on this charge that Liluashvili and members of his entourage have now been arrested, after he resigned from his post and lost his political influence. The indictment of Liluashvili after he left his six-year post as head of the Security Service is an indicator of clan rivalry and personal vendettas within Georgian Dream.

For years, the State Security Service has been referring to the statistics on corruption crime investigations in its activity reports. For example, in 2024, the agency stated that it had brought 39 people to criminal responsibility for corruption crimes. Despite criticism from the civil sector that corruption crimes were beyond the mandate of the State Security Service and that these cases were to be investigated by an independent body, the State Security Service continued to investigate, mainly uncovering cases of petty corruption.

According to the statement issued by the Prosecutor’s Office on December 23, 2025, the former head of the anti-corruption body was arrested as a result of operational and investigative actions jointly conducted by the Prosecutor General’s Office and the State Security Service of Georgia, for taking a particularly large amount of bribes and protecting the corrupt actions of accomplices over the years.

Given that the activities of the State Security Service, against the backdrop of both the legislative and state policies of the Georgian Dream party, are devoid of effective parliamentary or other types of democratic oversight, the actions of influential figures in the agency are not accountable or transparent. Recent events have shown that the issue of legal responsibility of high-ranking officials can arise under Georgian Dream only if they lose political power. The late criminal cases against both Liluashvili and former Prime Minister Gharibashvili once again confirm the existence of a politically biased justice system in Georgia. Neither the State Investigation Service nor other investigative structures have responded to information about alleged violations, and practically all agencies have failed to demonstrate even a minimal degree of independence. The ruling party, which itself alleges that its own leaders have illegally misappropriated large amounts of money and property, is again leaving the State Investigation Service, as well as the entire governance system, without democratic oversight. Currently, the governance system is completely closed and not transparent, and the government vertical is concentrated in the officials loyal to Irakli Kobakhidze, which is why there is no independent lever in the country to expose or detect corruption or other alleged crimes. The Parliament, which shall have a supervisory function, is actually subject to one-party control, while the Anti-Corruption Bureau, which fought civil society instead of corruption, is even formally being abolished, and the head of the State Security Service is a former functionary of the Georgian Dream party.

Against this background, replacing specific names and holding them accountable, of course, cannot ensure the elimination of corruption risks and the establishment of democratic, accountable or responsible governance.

The real fight against corruption requires an independent judiciary, independent Prosecutor's Office, and independent anti-corruption agencies that investigate all alleged cases, as well as parliamentary and public oversight and transparency, and not selective justice.