The Tbilisi City Court has sentenced Mikheil Saakashvili, former President of Georgia, to 4.5 years in prison for illegally crossing the country's state border.

Taking into account his previous convictions, Judge Mikheil Jinjolia issued a total sentence of 12 years and six months.

Saakashvili was arrested by the Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs on October 1, 2021, for violating the border. Earlier, on March 12, the Tbilisi City Court had sentenced him to nine years in prison for embezzling a significant amount of public funds.