Crime in Georgia (country)

Crime in Georgia has a long and complex history, deeply rooted in the Soviet period, when the republic was a center of the shadow economy and home to a disproportionate number of influential "thieves-in-law" (Georgian: კანონიერი ქურდები, kanonieri qurdebi). The country's law enforcement is primarily handled by the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia.

The post-Soviet transition in the 1990s was marked by civil conflict and state weakness, allowing organized crime to merge with political and economic elites. The 2003 Rose Revolution ushered in a period of radical reforms under President Mikheil Saakashvili, characterized by a "zero-tolerance" policy towards crime and corruption. This approach included a mass dismissal of approximately 16,000 police officers but also led to a dramatic surge in the country's prison population, which peaked at over 24,000 inmates by 2011, one of the highest rates in Europe.

Following a change in government in 2012, Georgia's approach shifted significantly. A large-scale amnesty in 2013 resulted in the prison population being more than halved, marking a move away from the previous administration's punitive policies. Contemporary crime in Georgia is dominated by property crimes (theft and robbery) and drug-related offenses, which are often linked to social and economic factors such as poverty and unemployment.

Despite significant progress in combating petty corruption, particularly within the patrol police, the country continues to face challenges with high-level corruption, the independence of the judiciary, and transnational crime originating from its breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.