Givi Tsuleiskiri, founder of Sphero Holding, has been arrested on suspicion of fraudulently misappropriating large sums of money belonging to citizens, whilst criminal proceedings have been initiated against Giorgi Murusidze, director of Sphero Invest. The announcement was made at a briefing held at the Georgian Prosecutor’s Office.
The case, being handled by the Anti-Fraud Unit, involves the fraudulent misappropriation of substantial sums belonging to citizens through abuse of official position by a pre-arranged group.
As stated at the briefing, the alleged actions of the accused have resulted in damages to citizens amounting to GEL 12 million.
“The investigation conducted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs has established that Givi Tsuleiskiri and Giorgi Murusidze, with the intention of fraudulently misappropriating large sums of money from private individuals, established a legal entity called Sphero Invest with 100% shareholding by Sphero Holding LLC.
Giorgi Murusidze was formally appointed as director; however, the actual management of the enterprise was jointly carried out by Givi Tsuleiskiri and Giorgi Murusidze.
Between February 2022 and October 2025, Givi Tsuleiskiri and Giorgi Murusidze, acting in the name of Sphero Invest, entered into contracts with private individuals concerning ‘temporary transfer of immovable property for residential purposes’ as well as so-called ‘capital investment’ agreements. Under the terms of the capital investment contracts, citizens transferred funds to Sphero Invest’s account, with the company promising to provide monthly returns. Upon the expiry of the agreement, the company was supposed to return the citizens’ deposited funds in full, but it failed to do so.
Despite this, Sphero Invest ceased paying rent and did not return the funds, leaving hundreds of citizens without accommodation.
Using the said scheme, Givi Tsuleiskiri and Giorgi Murusidze induced 244 citizens to transfer substantial sums into the organisation’s bank account. They themselves failed to fulfil their obligations and fraudulently misappropriated up to GEL 12 million.
During the course of the investigation, the number of victims and the extent of the damage may increase. In this criminal case, both accused face charges under Article 180, Parts 2(a) and 3(a) and (b) of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which carry a penalty of imprisonment for up to nine years.
The Prosecutor’s Office will submit a motion to the court requesting the imposition of detention as a preventive measure against the accused. Additionally, a search will be conducted for one member of the group in accordance with the legal procedures.
We wish to emphasise that ensuring the effective investigation of fraud cases is one of the primary priorities of the Georgian Prosecutor’s Office and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. A firm criminal policy is being pursued in relation to this category of offences, to safeguard the legitimate interests of victims,” it was stated during the briefing held at the Prosecutor’s Office.
