The officers of the Central Criminal Police Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the General Prosecutor"s Office conducted a joint investigation into the fraudulent appropriation of large amount of sums from tourists and theft committed in large quantities and detained the owner of cafe-bar “Scarpa” – person born in 1989.

The investigation established that the accused person and the employees of the cafe-bar "Scarpa", in order to get more financial benefits, brought cheap products to tourists instead of the products ordered by them, also changed the product prices in the menu and charged customers unreasonably large amounts.

The MIA exposed a similar fact, in September of the current year, when at the same cafe-bar, a Chinese citizen under the alcohol influence, who was accompanied by a young female (criminally linked with the detainee), lost consciousness. After recovery, he found out that 15,000 GEL had been transferred from his credit card to the account of the cafe-bar in three stages.

As a result of complex investigation process it was also established that a similar fraud scheme was also applied at the “Royal Club” in Tbilisi. In particular, one of the citizens along with his friend was invited to the “Royal Club” by two young females, who ordered meals and beverages from the menu and were later forced to pay an unreasonably large amount of cash for the order, namely – 1450 GEL.

Operative-investigative activities are underway in connection with the case of fraudulent misappropriation of large sums of money against tourists, in order to reveal other circumstances of the crime and identify/arrest others related to the mentioned facts.

Investigation is underway under Articles 180, part IV, sub-paragraph “B” and 177 part IV, sub-paragraph “B” of the Criminal Code of Georgia.