Modified March 1 case charge to be sent to court soon - RA Prosecutor  General 

ArmInfo.On November 18, during parliamentary hearings on "Reconsidering the March 1 Case," Prosecutor General Anna Vardapetyan described the actions taken by the Prosecutor's Office in this case from 2022 to the present, as part of the criminal prosecution and protection of state interests.

As a reminder, on March 1, 2008, following the February 19  presidential elections won by Serzh Sargsyan, unrest erupted in  Yerevan, culminating in clashes with law enforcement. The Armenian  opposition, led by first President Levon Ter-Petrosyan, who also ran  in the election, held rallies in central Yerevan beginning February  20, expressing dissatisfaction with the election results. On March  1-2, protests erupted into riots and clashes between protesters and  law enforcement, resulting in 10 deaths, including police officers,  and over 200 injuries of varying severity. On August 17, 2018, Nikol  Pashinyan declared that the case surrounding the events of March 1-2,  2008, in Yerevan had been fully resolved. However, to date, none of  those responsible have been held accountable for that crime.

Vardapetyan recalled that by a March 26, 2021, Constitutional Court  ruling, Article 300.1 of the Criminal Code (overthrow of the  constitutional order) was declared invalid and contrary to Articles  78 and 79 of the Constitution. Based on this decision, on April 6,  2021, the court of first instance terminated the criminal prosecution  of the defendants Robert Kocharyan (second President of the Republic  of Armenia), Seyran Ohanyan (former Minister of Defense of the  Republic of Armenia), and Yuri Khachaturov (former Deputy Head of the  Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Armenia) under Part 1 of  Article 300.1 of the previous Criminal Code, and Armen Gevorgyan  (former Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia) under  Article 38-300.1 of the Criminal Code due to lack of corpus delicti,  and the criminal proceedings were therefore terminated. All appeals  against this decision were dismissed, and the decision of the court  of first instance of April 6, 2021, was upheld.

The Prosecutor General filed a cassation appeal against the Court of  Appeal's decision, requesting that the lower courts' decisions be  overturned and the criminal case remanded for a new trial. By a  ruling of the Court of Cassation dated March 18, 2022, the Prosecutor  General's cassation appeal was accepted for proceedings. By a ruling  of January 19, 2024, the Court of Cassation asked the Constitutional  Court to determine the constitutionality of several articles of the  former Criminal Procedure Code.

Furthermore, by a ruling of the Constitutional Court dated July 22,  2024, Part 3 of Article 309.1 of the former Criminal Procedure Code  was found to be constitutional in that the prosecutor has the right  to amend the charges brought against the defendant (the legal  classification of the act with which he is charged) before the court  leaves the deliberation room if the defendant's actions contain  elements of another act provided for by criminal law, regardless of  the examination of evidence during the trial. Based on the decision  of the Supreme Judicial Council on September 2, 2024, the powers of  the judge hearing the case were terminated, and the criminal case was  transferred to another judge of the Yerevan City Court of First  Instance of General Jurisdiction.

On September 12, 2024, the Court of Cassation overturned the April  16, 2021, decision of the Yerevan City Court of First Instance of  General Jurisdiction and the November 26, 2021, decision of the  Criminal Court of Appeals, upholding it, and referred the case to the  Anti-Corruption Court for a new trial. Among other things, the Court  of Cassation noted that, in light of the Constitutional Court's  decision of July 22, 2024, if the prosecutor deems the act committed  to be qualified under another article of the Criminal Code, they are  authorized to take steps to supplement or amend the charges.

On October 11, 2024, the state prosecutor issued a ruling amending  the legal assessment of the acts imputed to Robert Kocharyan, Seyran  Ohanyan, Yuri Khachaturov, and Armen Gevorgyan under Part 1 of  Article 300.1 of the Criminal Code adopted on April 18, 2003, and  charging them under the new Part 3 of Article 309 of the Criminal  Code adopted on April 18, 2003 (corresponding to Clause 5 of Part 2  of Article 441 of the current Criminal Code).

The court granted the state prosecutor a deadline of November 24,  2025, to prepare and submit the aforementioned rulings in accordance  with the requirements of the Criminal Procedure Code. The amended  charges will be presented to the court shortly.

On August 11, 2025, the Prosecutor General's Office filed a  retrospective lawsuit with the Anti-Corruption Court against Robert  Kocharyan, Armen Gevorgyan, Seyran Ohanyan, and Yuri Khachaturov,  demanding the recovery of 670 million drams reimbursed by the  Republic of Armenia as a share of their compensation.

Simultaneously, the Prosecutor General's Office filed a motion for  interim relief, requesting the seizure of the property of the  defendants Robert Kocharyan, Armen Gevorgyan, Seyran Ohanyan, and  Yuri Khachaturov in the amount of the claimed value of 670 million  drams. By a decision of the Anti-Corruption Court on August 13, 2025,  the lawsuit was accepted for proceedings, and the motion for interim  relief was granted.

On the same day, Anna Vardapetyan continued, August 11, 2025, the  January 30, 2020 decision to terminate the criminal prosecution  against Sasha Afyan, who had served as Deputy Chief of Police since  March 1, 2008, was overturned.

"In the March 1 case, it has been substantiated that Sasha Afyan,  appointed Deputy Chief of Police under the Government of the Republic  of Armenia on February 12, 2008, exceeded his official authority on  March 1, 2008, and, in collusion with others, organized the actions  of various police units, involving the use of violence and special  means, to disperse peaceful demonstrators holding a sit-in in Freedom  Square in Yerevan, and subsequently to prevent their gatherings,  potential demonstrations, and gatherings in central parts of the  city, thereby causing significant harm to the rights and legitimate  interests of citizens, as well as the legitimate interests of society  and the state," she noted.

According to her, the Prosecutor General's decree states: "On the  evening of February 29, 2008, Chief of Police Hayk Harutyunyan  convened a meeting at which he ordered unit commanders to disperse  peaceful demonstrators in Yerevan's Freedom Square and to prohibit  any further gatherings there. Following the meeting, on the night of  February 29-March 1, Deputy Chief of Police Sasha Afyan, in a tense  atmosphere, assembled the officers of the said regiment at the  Special Operations Department of the Yerevan Police Department. He  then ordered the regiment's leadership to arm its personnel with riot  gear and transfer them to the said square to disperse the peaceful  demonstrators holding a sit-in in Freedom Square."

Around 6:30 AM, approximately 1,200 police officers, including  officers from the Special Police Regiment of the Yerevan Police  Department, were deployed in the streets adjacent to Freedom Square.  Following this, officers from the Special Police Regiment of the  Yerevan Police Department, organized by Sasha Afyan, entered the  square. Without grounds for the use of physical force and special  means, as stipulated by Article 29 of the RA Law "On Police," clearly  exceeding their authority, which was accompanied by the illegal use  of violence (physical force) and special means, dispersed hundreds of  peaceful protesters holding a sit-in and forcibly removed them from  the square. Simultaneously, other police units, in order to prevent  further gatherings and gatherings of citizens in the square, blocked  Freedom Square and prevented citizens from entering. Following the  forcible evacuation of protesters from Freedom Square, police forces  organized by Sasha Afian and others continued to pursue citizens in  central districts of the city using violence and riot gear,  suppressing gatherings, potential demonstrations, and rallies. As a  result of police actions in Freedom Square and adjacent streets, more  than three dozen citizens sustained minor and moderate injuries,  causing significant harm to the rights and legitimate interests of  citizens, as well as the legitimate interests of society and the  state. On October 26, 2019, a decision was made to charge Sasha Afian  under Part 2 of Article 38-309 of the Criminal Code, and he was  charged the same day. Article 309 of the Criminal Code, adopted on  April 18, 2003, provides for criminal liability for intentional  actions of an official that clearly exceed the scope of his authority  and cause significant damage to the rights and legitimate interests  of citizens, organizations, or the legitimate interests of society or  the state (in the case of property damage, an amount exceeding five  hundred minimum wages established at the time the crime was  committed, or its value). Part 2 of the article provides for the  qualification of the crime , that is, the same act  accompanied by the use of violence, weapons, or special means. The  Prosecutor General's resolution also stated:

Having established that the exercise of official powers by the  accused Sasha Afyan with the use of violence, weapons or special  means ceased on March 1, 2008, in connection with which the statute  of limitations for bringing Sasha Afyan to criminal responsibility,  established by paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Article 75 of the Criminal  Code adopted on April 18, 2003, expired, the investigator in charge  of the proceedings, Deputy Head of the Department for the  Investigation of Corruption, Organized and Official Crimes of the  Special Investigative Service Hrachya Mushegyan, on January 30, 2020,  issued a ruling to terminate the criminal prosecution initiated  against Sasha Afyan in the criminal case under Articles 38-309 of  Part 2 of the Criminal Code adopted on April 18, 2003, due to the  expiration of the statute of limitations for bringing Sasha Afyan to  criminal responsibility. The prosecutor overseeing the legality of  the preliminary investigation in this criminal case did not overturn  the aforementioned decision, thereby confirming its legality.

"According to the Prosecutor General's decision, the investigator in  charge of the proceedings, on January 30, 2020, to terminate the  public criminal prosecution initiated against Sasha Afyan under Part  2 of Article 309 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia,  adopted on April 18, 2003, and the procedural act of the supervising  prosecutor refusing to terminate it, are unlawful and unfounded and  subject to cancellation," Vardapetyan emphasized.

According to her, the Prosecutor General's decision, in addition to  national legislation, international documents, and the European Court  of Human Rights' decision in the case of Mushegh Saghatelyan v.   Armenia, is based on the Court of Cassation's ruling of December 23,  2023, which held that, since at least August 1, 2003, the effective  date of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia, adopted on  April 18, 2003, there has been a legislative prohibition on the  application of statutes of limitations to cases of torture or similar  treatment, including abuse of office.

Therefore, the Prosecutor General noted, Sasha Afyan was charged with  an act amounting to torture, and, therefore, the public criminal  prosecution initiated against Sasha Afyan could not be suspended due  to the legislative prohibition on the application of statutes of  limitations. "This incident will soon be sent to court with an  indictment," Vardapetyan concluded.