Anti-Corruption Committee: Six people detained in criminal case  against Robert Kocharyan

ArmInfo.  Six people have been detained in connection with the criminal case against Armenia's second president, Robert Kocharyan, including Robert Kocharyan  himself and his eldest son, Sedrak Kocharyan.

According to the press service of Armenia's Anti-Corruption  Committee, Kocharyan is accused of embezzling state property in  collusion with individuals close to him. Additionally, according to  the source, the second president is accused of acquiring several  properties of public and economic importance at prices below market  value. "In order to conceal the actual ownership of the property and  its criminal origin, the properties were registered to interconnected  companies.

The acquired property was subsequently disposed of through  development and sale, alienation to third parties, and transfer of  shares in the owner companies, including through gifts," the  Committee reported.

Specifically, according to the source, the land in question is an  8.3-hectare plot of land adjacent to Acharyan and Tsarav Aghbyur  Streets, purchased for 44,657,000 drams. In 2002, the Play City  entertainment center was built on it, and two years later, on  November 15, 2004, a 50% stake in the FastCard company, which owned  the property, was transferred and registered as a gift in the name of  the former president's son. The 2-hectare plot of land, located on  the left side of the Cascade complex, was purchased for 39,630,000  drams. It was subsequently exchanged for another state-owned plot of  land located in a more advantageous part of Yerevan and alienated for  1,741,931,000 drams. The building at 8 Paronyan Street, which was on  the balance sheet of the Yerasaspasarcum company, was also acquired  for 40 million drams.

Subsequently, the multi-apartment building built on this site  contains public spaces with a total area of 600 square meters, the  market value of which was 331 800,000 drams, as well as two parking  spaces, were registered in the name of the former president's son  through fictitious purchase and sale transactions," the department  noted.

According to the source, the Blue Sevan recreational complex was also  purchased for 83,669,000 drams, and 50% of the shares in the ART  BUILD company, which was the owner of the complex, were registered in  the name of the former president's son on January 15, 2010, through a  fictitious purchase and sale transaction. "A 29,000 square meter plot  of land at 7/1 Tsitsernakaberd Highway, which belonged to the  Children's and Youth Sports School of the Olympic Reserve for Tennis,  and a 1,700 square meter building located on it, were acquired for  12,267,000 drams. In 2008, the premium Orange Fitness club was built  on this land, and a 50% stake in the company was registered in 2009  through a fictitious transaction in the name of a company founded by  the former president's son," the Committee continued.

The agency also reported on "an alleged bribe to the second president  of Armenia, in which 56 real estate properties worth a total of 2  billion 633 million 934 thousand drams were transferred to him." "In  another case, it was established that the total market value of land  plots belonging to the Armenian Ministry of Defense, including those  designated for the construction of a research and production station,  was 1,393,870,000 drams. However, these plots were sold to a company  close to the former president at a price four times lower," the  Anti-Corruption Committee reported.

According to the investigation, in exchange for selling the land  plots at an unreasonably low price and ensuring the unimpeded  establishment of a representative office of the Japanese company  Toyota in Armenia, Kocharyan was given a 30% stake in Toyota Yerevan  as a bribe on May 9, 2006. "To conceal its criminal origin, the share  was registered under fictitious purchase and sale agreements in the  name of the former president's son. The preliminary investigation is  also examining the circumstances of money transfers made between 2001  and 2019 in the name of the former president's son, totaling  approximately 144 billion drams, 309 million US dollars, 77 million  euros, and 18 million Russian rubles, as well as the circumstances of  the acquisition of more than three dozen properties in Armenia and  abroad belonging to individuals connected to the criminal proceedings  and their family members," the department added.

It was noted that appropriate measures have been taken to seize the  property in order to prevent the possible transfer or alienation of  the property. "Six individuals have been detained, including the  second president of Armenia, Robert Kocharyan, and his son, Sedrak  Kocharyan," the Anti-Corruption Committee summarized.

This morning, it was reported that security forces had taken the  second president of Armenia, Robert Kocharyan, to the Anti-Corruption  Committee. Furthermore, searches have been underway since the early  morning of August 25 at the home of Levon Kocharyan, a member of the  National Assembly of Armenia from the opposition Armenia faction and  the son of the second president, Robert Kocharyan. It was also  reported that searches are being conducted at dozens of addresses of  companies belonging to the Kocharyan family. The Anti-Corruption  Committee of Armenia confirmed the detention of Robert Kocharyan and  his son, Sedrak Kocharyan. It is noteworthy that the day before,  Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan ordered law enforcement  agencies to deprive Kocharyan and the third president of the  Republic, Serzh Sargsyan, of their property.