On June 7, 2017, police arrested the members of the hip-hop group Birja Mafia — Young Mic and Kay-G. On June 9, the Ministry of Internal Affairs released a statement saying that during the personal search of Mikheil Mgaloblishvili (Young Mic), police had seized 1.4965 grams of the drug MDMA, and during the search of another individual (Giorgi Keburia – Kay-G), they found 2.3342 grams of MDMA. The investigation was launched under the charge of purchasing and storing an especially large amount of narcotics — a crime punishable by 8 to 20 years or even life imprisonment.

Mgaloblishvili’s wife, Erika Copeland, linked the arrest to Birja Mafia’s recently released music video, which satirized the police. Vice Prime Minister and Education Minister Aleksandre Jejelava said that “such disrespect toward law enforcement officers is a step against statehood.” Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili, however, claimed that “no one has ever been punished for expression under the Georgian Dream government.”

On June 9, the court ordered pre-trial detention for both musicians. During the hearing, Giorgi Keburia spoke about police pressure and linked the drug planting to their new video: “[They told me] let’s see if you’ll sing again.”

That evening, members of the student movement Auditoria 115 organized a protest in front of Parliament demanding their release. The next day, the White Noise Movement also joined the protest.

By June 10, it became known that the music video had been edited to remove the part in which a police officer was depicted as a dog. The actor, Giorgi Gagua, who played that role, stated that he hadn’t been aware of the video’s content and had asked for that fragment to be cut out.

That evening, a larger protest march began near Rustaveli metro station and moved toward Parliament. The demonstrators carried a large banner reading “The war against the people must end,” blocking Rustaveli Avenue. Streetlights were turned on late that evening — according to the city lighting company, due to a “manual activation caused by bad weather.”

While the protest was taking place, Bidzina Ivanishvili’s son, Bera Ivanishvili, posted on Facebook: “I’m with you guys! #FreeBirjaMafia #Freedom.” The next morning, Energy Minister and Vice Prime Minister Kakha Kaladze released a video statement saying, “It’s unacceptable for any of us to even suspect that law enforcement officers could plant drugs — this practice must remain in the past.”

A few hours later, the Prosecutor’s Office announced that it had launched an investigation into the possible planting of drugs. The agency also changed its position, saying that since the defendants were willing to cooperate, it would no longer request pre-trial detention.

Both musicians were released on bail later that day. Justice Minister Tea Tsulukiani said, “I’m very happy that both the judge and the prosecutor have taken the right stance.” Interior Minister Giorgi Mghebrishvili denied that drug planting was a systemic practice.

Before the 2018 presidential election, Mikheil Mgaloblishvili (Young Mic), who had accused police of planting drugs, openly supported the government-backed candidate Salome Zurabishvili, writing on social media: “Today we decide whether to go back to the time of planted drugs and torture of people for dissent.” His partner, Giorgi Keburia, on the other hand, sought compensation for moral and material damages with the help of the NGO Georgian Democracy Initiative (GDI).

On December 22, 2022, the Supreme Court upheld the November 9, 2021 ruling of the Court of Appeals, which ordered the Prosecutor’s Office to pay 24,140 GEL in compensation for unlawful detention, imprisonment, and prosecution.