Georgian ‘godfather’ lands in Warsaw and is immediately sent back

A Georgian crime figure who allegedly used dozens of identities was sent back to Tbilisi on the next available flight after landing at Warsaw’s Chopin Airport.

The 51-year-old, known by the alias “Dżeko,” travelled from Greece using one of his reported identities. Polish and foreign services had alerted the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Warsaw-Okęcie Border Guard post that a Georgian man described in post-Soviet criminal terminology as a “thief in law” might arrive.

Border guards detained him after the plane landed and checked his records. Krzysztof Wrześniowski, a spokesman for the Central Bureau of Investigation, said the man was in Poland illegally and that his continued stay could threaten public security and order.

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During the procedures, officers established that the foreign national was staying in Poland illegally, and that his continued stay could pose a threat to public security and order.

Further checks found entries under personal details the man had previously used. French authorities reportedly sought to bar him from entering or staying in European Union member states because of an earlier conviction for an offence carrying a potential sentence of at least one year. Germany cited alleged participation in an organized criminal group and a threat to public security and order. Officials said he may have used 39 other sets of personal details.

The Warsaw-Okęcie Border Guard commander ordered him to return to Georgia and imposed a 10-year ban covering Poland and the other Schengen countries. Authorities also questioned him as a suspect over allegedly submitting a false statement. The man denied the allegation and gave an explanation before being deported to Tbilisi.

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The French side indicated that this foreign national should be refused entry to and residence in the territory of European Union member states because of an earlier conviction for an offence punishable by at least one year in prison.