Sasun Khachatryan: Aram Harutyunyan has no procedural status in case of  giving a bribe

ArmInfo. Aram Harutyunyan,  former Minister of Nature Protection,  MP from the Republican Party faction (popularly known by the nickname "Bulki Aram"), does not have a procedural status in the case of a bribe given by entrepreneur  Silva Hambartsumyan with a view to obtaining a license to operate  mines in 2008.

According to Khachatryan, the criminal case is being considered by  the SIS. However, despite the rumors circulated in the media, Aram  Harutyunyan is not a person involved in this case. "He does not have  any procedural status within the framework of the case," Khachatryan  said.

To recall, recently Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced a  loud corruption revelation that is connected with one of the MPs. He  did not mention the name of the MP, saying only that it is the  largest corruption case in the history of independent Armenia.

Armenian businesswoman Silva Hambardzumian claims that in 2008 she  gave a $14 million bribe to the then environment minister and current  lawmaker Aram Harutiunian to obtain a mine development license.  "I  transferred $8 million to a bank account in Dubai that he mentioned  to me and paid another $6 million by installments through a person  whose name was Suren Avagian," Hambardzumian told RFE/RL's Armenian  service (Azatutyun.am).  "I had contacts with Aram Harutiunian since  2007 and bought three organizations from him. Then, when I mentioned  my intention to buy several mines, I was told that others had offered  bribes for that. I asked to quote the amount I should pay and he said  it was $14 million. He gave the bank account number of another person  named Araks Dilanian and on February 2, 2008 I transferred that  money," the entrepreneur claimed.  Hambardzumian said that she  received a license after allegedly giving the bribe, but soon  afterwards that license was suspended. She said she demanded that  Harutiunian return the money and he promised to provide real estate  instead, but eventually did not keep his promise. "He told me I could  do anything, but would get nothing. After that meeting I went  straight to the 6th police department [combating organized crime] and  reported the crime," she said.  Hambardzumian claimed that Araks  Dilanian, to whom she paid the money by installments, transferred it  to the Dubai bank accounts of three Armenian citizens. "One of those  citizens is Gagik Karapetian, the director of the Sevan Psychiatric  Hospital, another is his worker Viktor Martirosian, and I didn't know  the third one. After I received those papers it turned out that the  third person was Armen Khachatrian, who is the director of property  owned by Aram Harutiunian." The director of the Sevan Psychiatric  Hospital, however, denied that he was involved in the case. "I don't  know such a person. Please do not call me over that matter, do not  disturb me," he told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am).   Attempts by RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) to contact MP  Aram Harutiunian were not successful throughout the day.  The  lawmaker affiliated with the former ruling Republican Party of  Armenia did not even attend the National Assembly session today.   Asked whether she acknowledged that giving a bribe is also a criminal  offense, Hambardzumian said that it wasnt in 2008. "I think and have  always thought that giving a bribe should be punishable, but since  there was no way of dealing with the former government otherwise,  since it was impossible to do any business without giving a bribe, I  guess many people like me had to do so," she said. She also stated  that earlier the case was closed on the instruction of Serzh  Sargsyan's administration office.