Vakhtang Makhniashvili appears in a Toronto court on charges of attempted murder and aggravated assault, November 5, 2010.Photo Credit: Alex Tavshunsky
Pat Hewitt, The Canadian Press: Wednesday, November 10, 2010
TORONTO - The father of missing Toronto teen Mariam Makhniashvili will remain in jail on an unrelated attempted murder charge.
Vakhtang Makhniashvili waived his right to a bail hearing on Wednesday and consented to stay behind bars.
Outside court his lawyer, Calvin Barry, said Makhniashvili could not find a suitable surety to post bail - but added he might seek bail at a later date.
"I consented to the detention order given that we don't have a real plan from the second set of allegations in terms of suitable sureties at this time," Barry said.
"The wife's doing fine. I had a good talk with her today. He's doing fine. I spoke to him in the courtroom today."
Makhniashvili, 50, was charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault and failure to comply with bail conditions after a couple were stabbed in front of their east-end home last Thursday.
The couple, David and Delores Langer, had posted bail for Makhniashvili after he was charged with stabbing a neighbour in May.
The couple did not know Makhniashvili before that incident, and pulled their bail promise after Makhniashvili told local media he was suspicious of the motives of David Langer, who is a private detective.
The Langers have said they were only trying to help and felt hurt by his suspicions.
Makhniashvili's wife, Lela Tabidze, would not be considered a suitable surety for the latest charges because Makhniashvili is alleged to have violated house arrest on the previous charges, Barry said Wednesday.
Barry added he hopes to get a psychiatric exam for his client, who is in protective custody in the medical wing at the Metro West Detention Centre, later this week.
Mariam was 17 when she went missing after arriving at Forest Hill Collegiate on Sept. 14, 2009. The only solid clue was the discovery of her backpack and some school books in a parking lot the following month.
The Makhniashvili family, originally from the Republic of Georgia, had only been in Toronto for three months when their daughter disappeared. The parents lived in Los Angeles for five years before moving to Toronto, while Mariam and her brother lived with their grandparents in Georgia.
Vakhtang Makhniashvili said his daughter knew about calling 911, and police said at the time of her disappearance that she knew enough English to make herself understood.
Police have received tips of possible sightings of the missing girl from across Canada and beyond, and have urged anyone who knows Makhniashvili's whereabouts to contact police.
Earlier last week Makhniashvili said his son ran away overnight because his family wanted him to concentrate on math and the boy wanted to play guitar.
http://www.globaltoronto.com/Vakhtang+Makhniashvili+makes+court+appearance+attempted+murder+charges/3807916/story.html
