By TBILISI. Jan 11 (Interfax) – Georgia’s ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili needs to be released from prison due to extreme exhaustion, U.S. gastroenterologist Stuart Finkel said.
The U.S. doctor, who testified in the Tbilisi City Court by videoconference on Wednesday in a case involving possible deferral of imprisonment for the former Georgian president, said Saakashvili had received the wrong treatment while in prison, which led to heavy consequences for his organism.
Finkel said Saakashvili has been diagnosed with cachexia, extreme exhaustion of a person’s organism, which can negatively affect the progression of some illnesses.
Lawyer Shalva Khachapuridze said at the trial Saakashvili had lost more than 50 kilos while in prison. "Saakashvili now weighs only 77 kilos. He physically cannot eat," the lawyer said.
Three other U.S. doctors were earlier questioned at the trial. They said they had diagnosed Saakashvili with progressing dementia, which they said is also grounds for release from prison.
Saakashvili is implicated in several criminal cases in Georgia. He considers his detention to be illegal and says he has been framed.
