Ex-premier of Armenia, affiliated persons charged on several counts 

ArmInfo. The Anti-Corruption Committee of Armenia reports that during the preliminary investigation it was established that Hovik Abrahamyan, holding the positions of Minister of Territorial Administration of the Republic  of Armenia, Chief of Staff of the President and Prime Minister of the  Republic of Armenia, using his position and influence on state bodies  and local government bodies, ordered the organization of illegal  auctions. As a result, Abrahamyan acquired land plots with a total  area of about 75,000 square meters in the Dilijan community of Tavush  region, arable land and pastures with a total area of 120 hectares in  the Narek community of Ararat region and land plots with a total area  of 48.4092 hectares in the Mkhchyan community.

Thus, the above-mentioned real estate objects, acquired at a price  significantly lower than the market value, were seized from the  property fund of the communities without legal grounds. Then, in  order to conceal the criminal origin of the said real estate, the  market value of which is approximately 240 million drams, O.A.   ensured that they were registered in the name of his relatives, and  then, as a result of fictitious transactions, registered a  significant part of the real estate in the name of his wife, as well  as the company he managed, actually managing and owning them.

In addition, the former high-ranking official was illegally engaged  in entrepreneurial activity by sponsoring commercial organizations  engaged in illegal sand mining, including the company Metzn Hovnan  LLC, created in the name of a person affiliated with him. In  particular, O. A., in the period 2006-2016, based on personal motives  to take over the company Avazahatik LLC, which was engaged in sand  mining in the territory adjacent to the site allocated to the  above-mentioned company, in fact, to merge the two companies and, as  a result, carry out more profitable business activities, during  2008-2015, through his brother, his son and other persons,  participated in the management of the two above-mentioned companies  engaged in sand mining, and received a particularly large profit of  about 230 million drams from the operation of the sand quarry of  Avazahatik LLC. 

Then, in order to conceal the criminal origin of the property  acquired as a result of illegal participation in entrepreneurial  activity, O.A. mixed the above-mentioned amount with his other  income, and then gave it a legal appearance through various civil law  transactions, including the acquisition of various property and the  performance of various banking operations.

In addition, the preliminary investigation revealed that O. A. did  not take effective measures to prevent illegal sand mining by a  company affiliated with him in violation of the established  procedure. In particular, during the period of 2014-2016 and in the  subsequent period, the above-mentioned person affiliated with O. A.  did not use the land in accordance with the coordinates of the site  granted with the right to subsoil use, but extracted river sand also  directly from the bed of the crater section of the Araks River,  deepening its bottom by about two meters. As a result of the  above-mentioned actions, soil degradation occurred in the adjacent  territory of the sand washing plant on an area of 5950 sq.m., as a  result of which the main bed of the Araks River, located on the  corresponding section of the state border of the Republic of Armenia,  with a length of about 6 km, changed and dried up, forming an island  with an area of 307.82 hectares near the border.

For committing the above-mentioned criminal acts, O. A. charged with  abuse of office, exceeding official powers, illegal participation in  entrepreneurial activity and legalization (laundering) of property  obtained by criminal means on an especially large scale using  official position.

During the preliminary investigation, the property of the accused and  persons affiliated with him was seized. The preliminary investigation  of the criminal case has been completed. The materials of the  criminal case along with the indictment have been sent to the  supervising prosecutor with a motion to approve it and send it to  court.

According to Hetq, the Prosecutor General's Office has applied to the  Anti-Corruption Court with a demand to invalidate the sale of land in  the village of Mkhchyan in the Ararat region to members of the family  of former Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan.  Three lawsuits have been  filed against the enlarged community of Artashat (which includes the  village of Mkhchyan). Two of them concern the sale of land to the son  of the former prime minister, Argam Abrahamyan. Another one concerns  the sale of land to his wife, Juliette Abrahamyan. The Prosecutor  General's Office, in particular, demands that the protocols on the  tender and sale and purchase between the former village headman and  members of the Abramyan family in 2003-2004 be declared invalid. We  are talking about plots of land with an area of 8.9 hectares, 7.2  hectares and 4000 sq. m.