Tuesday,
Security Service Details Fraud Case Against Kocharian’s Son
Armenia - A masked National Security Service officer escorts a criminal suspect
in Yerevan, July 4, 2018.
Armenia’s National Security Service (NSS) on Tuesday reported details of its
fraud charges brought against former President Robert Kocharian’s son Sedrak,
saying that he evaded nearly $2 million in taxes.
Sedrak Kocharian revealed on Monday that he has been charged with tax evasion
and money laundering. He rejected the accusations as “fabricated,” saying that
they are part of the Armenian authorities’ persecution of his arrested father
and broader family.
In a statement, the NSS said that the criminal case stems from $5.3 million
which had been donated to Kocharian Jr. by an unnamed “third person.” It
claimed that he used a complex fraud scheme to illegally avoid paying about 917
million drams ($1.9 million) in income tax which should have been levied from
that sum.
The NSS statement added that through one of his companies the ex-president’s
son legalized the “revenue obtained by criminal means” by adding it to his $5.7
million bank account. That money was then spent on the purchase of a three-star
hotel in downtown Yerevan, it said.
The statement said that the director of that company, Aleksan Vorskanian, has
also been charged with tax evasion and pleaded guilty to the accusation.
Armenia - Sedrak Kocharian.
The NSS stressed that its investigation is not yet over. “Large-scale
investigative actions are being taken to ascertain the legality of the
acquisition by Sedrak Kocharian and members of his family of numerous
properties and other assets,” it said.
The NSS director, Artur Vanetsian, said in September that his agency is
scrutinizing what he described as hundreds of millions of dollars worth of
assets belonging to former President Kocharian and his relatives.
Sedrak was subsequently questioned as a witness in that corruption probe. He
will risk heavy fines and up to 12 years in prison if found guilty of tax fraud
and money laundering.
Robert Kocharian was arrested in December on charges stemming the 2008
post-election violence in Yerevan which left ten people dead. He denies them as
politically motivated.
The 64-year-old ex-president, who ruled the country from 1998-2008, has also
denied enriching himself or his family while in office. He has only admitted
that his two sons are engaged in entrepreneurial activity.
Serzh Sarkisian’s Brother Prosecuted
• Naira Bulghadarian
Armenia -- Aleksandr Sarkisian is taken for questioning by the National
Security Service, Yerevan, July 4, 2018.
A controversial brother of Armenia’s former President Serzh Sarkisian has been
formally charged with fraud, his lawyer said on Tuesday.
The lawyer, Mihran Poghosian, told RFE/RL’s Armenian service that the
accusation stems from over a dozen drawings by the 20th century Armenian
painter Martiros Saryan which were found in Aleksandr Sarkisian’s family house
in Yerevan in July. Poghosian dismissed it as baseless but did not go into
details. He also said that his client was not arrested pending investigation.
Officers of the National Security Service (NSS) confiscated the drawings worth
an estimated $280,000 when they searched the house in July. The NSS claimed
that Sarkisian’s elder son Narek had deceived Saryan’s descendants to get hold
of them. Narek, who fled Armenia June, was subsequently charged with illegal
arms possession and drug trafficking.
Aleksandr Sarkisian was briefly detained by the NSS after the nine-hour search.
Also in July, his second son, Hayk, was arrested on charges of attempted murder
and illegal arms possession. A Yerevan court freed him on bail in September.
During his brother’s 2008-2018 rule, Aleksandr Sarkisian, who is better known
to the public as “Sashik,” earned notoriety for his flamboyant behavior and
insults addressed to critics of Armenia’s former government. The 62-year-old is
thought to have made a big fortune in the past two decades. He held a
parliament seat from 2003-2011.
Sarkisian’s $30 million Armenian bank account was frozen this summer as part of
a separate inquiry conducted by the NSS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian
publicly demanded in September that he “return the money to the state budget.”
The ex-president’s brother rejected Pashinian’s demand as illegal. He said that
the authorities have not come up with any proof that the sum was earned
illegally. Still, he made clear that he will be ready to donate some of it to
the state if his and his family members’ assets are unblocked.
Citing an unnamed government source, Civilnet.am reported earlier on Tuesday
that Aleksandr Sarkisian has transferred $18.5 million to the state. His lawyer
refused to confirm or refute the report.
Armenia -- President Serzh Sarkisian (R) awards a medal to his brother Levon,
March 22, 2016.
Also facing prosecution is Serzh Sarkisian’s second brother, Levon. He and his
daughter were charged with “illegal enrichment” after tax inspectors discovered
in June that they hold millions of dollars in undeclared deposits at an
Armenian bank. Levon Sarkisian reportedly left the country around the same time.
Serzh Sarkisian stepped down in April 2018 amid Pashinian-led mass protests
sparked by his attempt to extend his rule by becoming prime minister. He has
not publicly commented on the embarrassing charges brought against his
relatives. But some of his associates have alleged political motives behind the
high-profile criminal cases.
Edmon Marukian, the leader of the opposition Bright Armenia Party (LHK) which
had also challenged Sarkisian, expressed concern at what he described as a lack
of transparency in the prosecution of individuals linked to the former regime.
In particular, he wondered why “Sashik” reportedly made the hefty payment to
the state without a court ruling.
“Don’t get me wrong, I welcome the fact that he returned [the money,]” Marukian
told reporters. “I just want us to understand what kind of a process it
resulted from.”
Armenian Speaker Opposes Return To Presidential Republic
• Astghik Bedevian
Armenia - Newly elected speaker Ararat Mirzoyan is congratulated by parliament
deputies, Yerevan, January 14, 2019.
Parliament speaker Ararat Mirzoyan on Tuesday spoke out against the idea of
restoring a presidential system of government in Armenia which has been floated
by former President Levon Ter-Petrosian’s political party.
In a weekend statement, the Armenian National Congress (HAK) called for a
referendum on reverting to the “semi-presidential” system which gave sweeping
executive powers to the president of the republic. It said the referendum
should be held by February 2020 and followed by the conduct of a presidential
election within a year.
“I don’t support a return to the semi-presidential system at all,” Mirzoyan
said, commenting on the idea. “I think that we should keep moving forward. We
now have a parliamentary system and must do everything to make it a success.”
“Constitutional changes are possible, but they must not be so radical -- and
this is my personal opinion -- that they will switch the country from the
parliamentary to the semi-presidential model,” he told reporters. In
particular, he said, they could give more powers to the current, largely
ceremonial president of the republic.
Mirzoyan is a leading member of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s My Step
alliance, which has not yet officially reacted to the HAK proposal. Another
senior My Step figure, Lena Nazarian, said on Monday that the authorities are
ready to discuss it.
Armenia became a parliamentary republic as a result of a controversial
constitutional reform in 2015 which was initiated by then President Serzh
Sarkisian. The transformation was widely believed to be aimed at enabling him
to extend his decade-long rule. Sarkisian provoked mass protests and resigned
in April 2018 after attempting to hold on to power.
The HAK’s idea has been rejected out of hand by Bright Armenia (LHK), one of
the two opposition parties represented in the current Armenian parliament. Its
leader, Edmon Marukian, said on Tuesday the parliament should on the contrary
be given more levers to hold the government in check.
Marukian announced in that regard that the LHK will propose constitutional
changes that would give more rights to the opposition minority in the National
Assembly.
Press Review
Lragir.am reacts to Russian defense analyst Igor Korotchenkov’s claim that
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s wife, Defense Minister Davit Tonoyan and other
senior Armenian officials are members of an “unofficial club” sponsored by the
British Embassy in Yerevan. Korotchenkov has also said that Russia will not
tolerate Armenia’s “attempts to sit on two tables.” The online publication
links these claims to a series of anti-Armenian talk shows aired by Russian TV
channels in recent days. It says that Kremlin-linked commentators periodically
portray last year’s regime change in Armenia as a Western-backed “color
revolution” and that they are assisted by some “representatives of Armenia’s
former ruling regime” in that endeavor.
“Zhoghovurd” reiterates its belief that former President Serzh Sarkisian turned
Armenia into a parliamentary republic in a bid to extend his decade-long rule.
“Therefore, serious discussions on a change of the government system in Armenia
are really necessary, especially given that the authorities intend to enact
constitutional changes,” writes the paper. “A constitution adopted for one
person through a rigged referendum contains serious obstacles and pitfalls.”
“Aravot” disapproves of harsh verbal attacks on Pashinian voiced by his
political opponents and other critics. “Let us differentiate attacks from
criticism,” editorializes the paper. “When the target is a person, rather than
a practice, when something is said in an ill-tempered manner, that is an
attack. When you see nothing good in your target, that is an attack too.” The
paper says it is equally wrong for the authorities to respond to such attacks
in kind. The authorities should also realize that what they hear in the
parliament from opposition lawmakers is criticism, not attacks. “In this case,
the reactions of the prime minister and his allies were not adequate,” it says.
(Lilit Harutiunian)
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
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