Georgia freezes properties, business shares linked to call center fraud masterminds

Georgia’s Prosecutor’s Office froze the assets of key managers and top scammers involved in a massive call center fraud on Thursday, following an exposé by investigative journalists last week.

According to land and business registry documents, the freeze affects the real estate holdings of the alleged mastermind behind the operation, Akaki Kevkhishvili. Other frozen properties belong to Meri Shotadze (alias Kseniya Koen), the owner and manager of the call center, as well as top scammers Mariam Charchian, Takhir Sultanov, and Lana Vakhtangadze (also known as Mary Roberts, Barry Anderson, and Lana Lehman).

"An application has been submitted to the National Agency of Public Registry. Applicant: Prosecutor General’s Office of Georgia. The application requests the registration of the freezing order," the documents state.

A spokeswoman for the Prosecutor’s Office confirmed the freeze but declined to comment on whether any arrests had been made.

"In the interest of the investigation, no further details can be provided," Baia Tsanava told reporters.

The frozen assets include Akaki Kevkhishvili’s personal properties, as well as newly acquired real estate purchased under his mother’s name, including a newly built house and an apartment in Tbilisi, Georgia’s capital. The total value of these properties exceeds $750,000.

Reporters discovered that after journalists contacted her for comment on February 24 and 25, Meri Shotadze swiftly sold two apartments in Tbilisi. However, despite the sale, the Prosecutor’s Office proceeded to freeze both properties.

In addition to real estate, the freezing order also applies to Akaki Kevkhishvili and Meri Shotadze’s shares in their jointly owned furniture company.

Furthermore, assets such as a parking lot, a piece of land, and apartments belonging to Lana Vakhtangadze, one of the top scammers at A.K. Group, as well as those owned by Takhir Sultanov (alias Barry Anderson) and Mariam Charchiani (alias Mary Roberts) and their family members in Tbilisi and surrounding areas, have also been frozen by authorities.

Despite multiple attempts by OCCRP reporters to obtain comments, the scammers’ mobile phones—including Shotadze’s—were turned off, while Akaki Kevkhishvili did not answer his phone.