American businessman jailed over entering Georgia via Abkhazia

An American businessman, employed by a Sochi-based tourist agency, has been jailed by a Georgian court after entering the country through the breakaway republic of Abkhazia.

Dale De Rosa was on his way to Turkey to renew his Russian visa when he was detained by Georgian border guards on Saturday.

As an American citizen, Dale De Rosa does not need a visa to visit the Caucasian country, but he broke Georgian law by entering via the disputed territory of Abkhazia, and now faces up to five years in prison.

His wife, Natalya Nevskaya, has explained her husband's situation.

‘In the night time I got a phone call. It was Dale. He was in jail. They arrested him. Dale crossed the border by bus. And he went to a Georgian person to ask where he can put a stamp to confirm that he crossed the border. Instead of helping Dale, those people just arrested him. I believe that they were military people, but probably not. And they said that he had illegally crossed the Georgian border and had broken the law,' she said.