On January 17, Georgian citizen Avtandil Martiashvili was driving a truck through Armenia to Turkey when he was stopped for an inspection. Meghri customs officers found a special compartment containing 850 kg of heroin, and Martiashvili was arrested.
A day later, the head of the company that leased the truck was also arrested. Turkish citizen Osman Oğurlu was accused of organizing the transport of the drugs through Georgia and Armenia to Turkey.
The combined trials, which commenced Monday according to HETQ, came after being postponed twice - once because of translation issues, and then once more as a result of claims by the Georgian attorney had defended Martashvili that he needed more time. The next hearing is set for December 11.
