TURKISH CITIZEN FOUND GUILTY AND RELEASED IN COURTROOM

YEREVAN, AUGUST 16, NOYAN TAPAN. The court of first instance
of Yerevan’s Malatia-Sebastia community (chaired by Judge Karen
Farkhoyan) made on August 16 a decision, according to which Ektan
Turkyilmaz, a Turkish citizen, was sentenced to two years’ conditional
imprisonment with one year’s probation without supervision. The court
ruled that material evidence containing 88 items of literature shall be
handed over to the Republic of Armenia. The court found E. Turkyilmaz
guilty of smuggling and attempted smuggling. In his indictment, the
prosecutor Koryun Piloyan asked to impose a punishment not related to
imprisonment – 1 mln drams (about 2.3 thousand dollars) in fine and
confiscation of the books as material evidence. On the contrary, the
defence took the view that the acuused must be acquited of smuggling
charge in the absence of crime. To recap, according to the indictment,
the accused, aided by his sister, smuggled Ghevond Alishan’s book
“Sisvan and Cilicia: Levon Metsagorts” out of Armenia. As regards
attempted smuggling, the defence asked the court to impose a punishment
not related to imprisonment – without confiscation of the seized
items. The Turkish citizen may appeal against the court decision to
the RA Appeal Court on Criminal and Military Cases within 15 days.