Alexander Pracht
A string of arrests involving officials linked to Armenia’s pre-2018 administration was reported on Friday, with several former senior Republican party figures facing criminal charges.
Among them is former Yerevan mayor and transport minister Gagik Beglaryan, who has been charged with money laundering and abuse of authority. The same charges have also been brought against former education minister Armen Ashotyan and former finance minister and tycoon Gagik Khachatryan.
Ashotyan was arrested earlier in the day, while it remained unclear at the time of publication whether Khachatryan is currently in Armenia and subject to detention.
Investigators said Ashotyan and Khachatryan are accused of being part of a criminal plot involving a fraudulent appropriation of property worth more than $500,000 owned by Bryusov State University in Yerevan.
An arrest warrant has also been issued for former defense minister Vigen Sargsyan in connection with the same case; he served on the university’s management board at the time of the alleged scheme.
In a seemingly separate development, former State Property Management Committee chairman Arman Sahakyan was arrested on charges of electoral bribery. Authorities did not specify which political force was allegedly involved in the case.
Just like the other individuals that were charged on Friday, Sahakyan was a senior member of the Republican Party, which dominated Armenia’s political system prior to the 2018 revolution but is not participating in this year’s parliamentary elections.
The arrests come amid heightened political tensions ahead of the nationwide vote scheduled for Sunday.
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