The Interior Ministry (MIA) announced during a briefing on October 18 that nine people had been arrested in connection with the death of 13-year-old Marita Mefarishvili died after being electrocuted in a newly renovated fountain in Vake Park. Those arrested include the deputy head of the Environmental Protection Department of Tbilisi City Hall and Lasha Purtskhvanidze, the director of Greenservice+, the main contractor for the renovation work.
How were the teenagers electrocuted?
According to the Interior Ministry, the youths were electrocuted because the cables were damaged during repair work on September 22, 2022. On that day, New Metal Design LLC, a Greenservice+ subcontractor, employed two electric welders who were instructed to encase the black water pipes coming out of the fountain’s electric motor with a stainless steel cover.
To carry out the work, the welders removed the metal mesh around the electric motor and, when reinstalling it, damaged the insulating casing of one of the power cables after it had been pinched between the concrete surface and the metal mesh; a fact they failed to notice.
Why was this additional work needed?
According to police, on October 22, 2021, Tbilisi City Hall signed a contract with Greenservice+ LLC for repair works of Vake Park fountain and fountain cascade. On August 26, 2022, the same department of City Hall officially accepted part of the repair work on the fountain.
However, despite the completion of the work, the deputy chief of the city hall’s environmental protection department asked the director of Greenservice+ to put a metal jacket on the black water pipes, according to the MIA. Greenservice+ commissioned its subcontractor New Metal Design LLC to do this.
Why was the faulty wiring not detected?
According to the investigation, New Metal Design LLC “did not verify the work of the arc welders they hired and the Greenservice+ manager did not properly supervise the work.”
Police say the director of Greenservice+ also failed to carry out an appropriate inspection before presenting the finished work to City Hall, and the deputy chief of the City Hall’s environmental protection department also failed to carry out an inspection before accepting this work.
According to the Interior Ministry, had the above people properly performed their duty, the damaged electric line would have been discovered and the fatal outcome could have been avoided.
Why did City Hall accept a defective fountain in the first place?
An independent inspection of the work carried out is required by law and is carried out either by the certified contractor or by the municipality itself. According to the investigation, Greenservice+ has signed an agreement with MshenInspect LCC to prepare the inspection required for the signing of the handover law with the Environmental Protection Department of City Hall. MshenInspect LLC conducted an inspection of the value of the volume of work actually performed and provided the conclusions to Greenservice+.
The law and contract also required an inspection to certify the works’ compliance with building codes, which MshenInspect LLC’s original report did not include. The investigation says the director of Greenservice+ had relied on the director and inspector of MshenInspect to falsify the inspection document and begin checking compliance “in exchange for continuing a business relationship with their company”.
This fake certificate, dated August 25, 2022, was presented by the Greenservice Director of City Hall’s Environmental Protection Department and became the basis for the acceptance of the project and the official handover of the well to the community.
What are the charges?
According to the Interior Ministry, the deputy head of the Environmental Protection Department of the City Hall has been charged under Article 342(2) of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which provides for dereliction of duty resulting in the death or serious injury of a person. He faces 2-5 years in prison.
Meanwhile, Purtskhvanidze was charged by Greenservice+ under Article 220 Prima (2), which related to negligence resulting in the death or serious injury of a person, and Article 362 (1), which related to the falsification of official documents. Other representatives of Greenservice+ and New Metal Design LLC have also been charged under Article 220 Prima (2).
Meanwhile, another Greenservice+ employee has been charged under Article 25-362(1) with incitement to produce a forged official document, while the director of MshenInspect LLC has been charged with producing a forged official document under Article 362(1).
Finally, the two welders who carried out the work are under investigation pursuant to paragraph 2 of Article 240 of the Criminal Code, which implies a breach of safety rules resulting in the death or serious injury of a person.
The MIA stated that the investigation is ongoing and that it is possible that more charges will be filed as more evidence is gathered.
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