Georgian police have arrested 72 people in an operation in the southwestern Adjara region against the post-Soviet mafia network known as the ‘thieves-in-law’. Those detained had reportedly been in contact with high-ranking member Aslan Kobuladze, also known as Aslan Batumsky, who lives abroad in exile.
Interior Minister Gela Geladze told media about the operation during a press conference on Monday.
A 75-year-old woman was injured during the operation, which Geladze said was the result of glass fragments. The family of the woman, reportedly the mother of some alleged mafia-linked individuals detained, claimed she had received a gunshot wound.
None of the individuals were mentioned by name in the briefing or subsequent Interior Ministry statement, aside from Kobuladze, who was not physically connected to the operation, as he reportedly lives in Turkey. Another two individuals — the brothers Rezo and Piruz Tsulukidze — were named by local media outlet Batumelebi as having been arrested.
According to the briefing and other reporting, the operation appears to have stemmed from a connection to Kobuladze, who has a lengthy rap sheet and has done several stints in prison in Georgia and Russia. He was reportedly deported from Russia after being released in prison in 2019, after which he moved to Istanbul. Kobuladze’s criminal exploits have been widely documented online.
The operation is the latest indication that Georgian authorities are stepping up their efforts to rein in the country’s mafia network, one of the most prominent in the post-Soviet world. In December 2025, 49 were detained in another counter-mafia operation, which resulted in 63 being prosecuted for their links to the thieves-in-law.
Yousef Bardouka
