Georgia alleges scavenger, 75, shut down Internet

[Danny McPherson <danny () tcb net>]

<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20110407/eu-georgia-internet-out/>

Georgia alleges scavenger, 75, shut down Internet

April 7, 2011 03:37 PM EST |  

TBILISI, Georgia — An elderly Georgian woman who allegedly shut off Internet service in her country and neighboring 
Armenia while scavenging for copper cable is facing charges that could lead to three years in prison.

Authorities say 75-year-old Aiyastan Shakaryan severed a fiberoptics cable on March 28, shutting off the information 
highway in much of Georgia and all of Armenia for several hours. The cable ran parallel to a railroad track in eastern 
Georgia where she was allegedly scavenging.

Georgian Interior Ministry spokesman Zurab Gvenetadze said Thursday she has been charged with property destruction, 
which carries a sentence of up to three years, but it's probable she would get a lighter sentence because of her age.

Shakaryan on Thursday told television channel Imedi that she isn't guilty.

The 600-kilometer (380-mile) fiberoptic cable network that stretches through the country belongs to Georgian Railway 
Telecoms, an offshoot of the state railroad company, which is responsible for their security.

Railroad spokeswoman Irma Stepnadze was quoted by the news website netgazeti.ge as saying the cables "are guarded at 
the highest level."

In Armenia, a spokeswoman for the country's largest Internet service-provider Armentel, Anush Begloyan, said "the 
incident forces our company to think about diversifying our channels."

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