CRIMINAL CASE AGAINST ROYAL ARMENIA’S MANAGEMENT SENT TO COURT

Noyan Tapan, Armenia
Oct 20 2006

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 20, NOYAN TAPAN. The preliminary investigation of
the criminal case against the management of Royal Armenia Ltd was
completed and the case has been sent to court. Gevorg Minasian,
the company’s lawyer, said this at the October 20 press conference.

To recap, the case started on March 10, 2005. On the 7th month of
the investigation, the company’s co-owner Gagik Hakobian and deputy
director Aram Ghazarian were arrested. They were accused of smuggling,
non-payment of taxes, document forgery, legalization of financial
resources in an illegal way, and G. Hakobian – also of fraud.

During the press conference, representatives of Royal-Armenia expressed
discontent that by the investigator’s decision, a 38,400-kg and
76,800-kg shipments of green coffee that the company received from
abroad continue to be under arrest. They are not customs-cleaned,
as a result of which 2 trucks and 6 containers of the foreign
transporter have been under "customs arrest" since September 27,
2006, for which Royal-Armenia will bear property responsibility to
the foreign transporter.

"This action with respect to the company is a previously planned
damage which has no bearing to justice and law," the application sent
to the RA president, prime minister and prosecutor general reads.

According to the application, the company was forced to stop the
process of production and to dismiss 48 employees.

Representatives of Royal-Armenia believe that the investigator’s
decision and the inaction of customs employees are not justified.

According to them, Ltd is not a civil defendant in this criminal
case, and as a legal entity and a independent subject of the law
is not responsible for the liabilities of its participants. "Even
if we admit that the Ltd participants committed an offence, it is
not a reason to put an arrest on the raw material imported by the
company," the company representatives stated. According to them,
in such a case sanctions may be used with respect to the defendants’
property and their shares in the company’s capital.