How much is the fine under Article 57¹?
From 2,000 to 2,500 lari. Beyond the fine, the article provides for confiscation of the object of the offence — the solid mineral resource — while confiscation of the instrument of the offence is possible but not obligatory. The exact amount inside that range is set by the body examining the case.
Our truck was taken to a protected parking area. What has to happen before it is released?
Under Note 1, the decision in the case must first enter into legal force. The vehicle is then returned to its holder or owner on production of proof that the fine has been paid, proof that the environmental damage imposed for unlawful subsoil use has been compensated, and the registration certificate or a power of attorney. While any one of those is missing, the note gives no ground for release.
The vehicle belongs to the company, not to the driver. Does that change anything?
The note ties the seizure to the fact that the object of the offence was placed on the vehicle, not to who owns it, and it charges the transport and storage costs to the offender. The article sets out no separate route for an owner who is not the offender, so that point has to be raised inside the case itself and supported with ownership documents.
Is the extracted material always confiscated?
The sanction is worded as a fine with or without confiscation of the instrument of the offence and with confiscation of the object of the offence. The instrument limb carries an express alternative; the limb covering the solid mineral resource does not. That is why arguments about equipment and arguments about the material itself are made differently.
