After the suspicious sale of this hydro-electric station, the prime minister's brother became its director

The former mayor of Vanadzor and his brother sold a hydro-electric station on the Marts River for 50,000 drams—$123 according to Friday’s exchange rate—after which Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s brother was named the facility’s director, an investigation by Azatutyun.am revealed.

The suspicious transaction was made by the former Vanadzor mayor Samvel Darbinyan and his brother, Seyran, who sold the hydro-electric station to the Yuri Kokobelyan, the 20-year-old nephew of “Free Democrats” party chairmen Khachatur Kokobelyan just two months before the 2021 parliamentary elections.

According to official documents on the day of the sale, Pashinyan’s brother, Armen was named the facility’s director. Armen Pashinyan lived in Russia and returned to Armenia after the popular movement in 2018 that saw his brother, Nikol, ascend to power in Armenia.

Following written requests by Azatutyun.am, the government registrar provided a one-and-a-half page sales agreement, which states that the “seller are selling 100 percent to buyer to become the owner. The price of the sale is 50,000 drams as agreed by both sides.

The sales agreement (Azatutyun.am graphic)

According to the same register the Argishti-2 Hydro-Electric Station is worth approximately 250 million drams, reported Azatutyun.am. Armenia’s power company reported that the station in question in 2019 to 2020 alone has had more than $1.5 million output.

The Darbinyan brothers did not respond to questions regarding the reason for selling this profitable venture for a mere $100.

According to official records reviewed by Azatutyun.am, the new owner of the hydro-electric station, Yuri Kokobelyan is the owner or director of various business. Azatutyun.am was not able to locate the young Kokobelyan at the address provided on records, nor, the news outlet reported, was there any record of his work.

The deed of sale (Azatutyun.am graphic)

His uncle, Khachatur Kokobelyan, the leader of the “Free Democrats” party did not return interview requested from Azatutuyun.am, which was unable to ascertain how the Darbinyan brothers were convinced to sell the station for $100—a business that had proved them with an income for 10 years.

A representative of the hydro-electric station to Azatutyun.am that during its 10-year operation, the station has never stopped functioning for long periods of time.

“If there is shortage of water, that’s when we shut it down—it could for one day or it could be for five hours,” the representative told Azatutyun.am.

While refusing to discuss the details of the sale, the Darbinyan brothers are also denying that they sold the business in order to cut short criminal charges pending against them.

According to Azatutyun.am, a few months prior to the sale agreement, a court had found the former mayor, Samvel Darbinyan, had illegally cede properties within Vanadzor causing 60 million drams in losses. The court, however, had decided to abandon the case because it passed the statute of limitations.

As recently as 2019, the hydro-electric station was embroiled in a messy criminal investigation. The prosecutors were presenting evidence that during Samvel Darbinyan’s tenure, in 2010, the Vandazor water treatment plant was illegally sold. Darbinyan allegedly had organized a fraudulent sale and had sold the 240 million-dram facility for 60 million drams to his associate or relative. The prosecutor suspect that pipes and expensive equipment from the water treatment plant were used in the hydro-electric plant owned by the Darbinyans, reported Azatutyun.am.

Last year, the prosecutor of the Lori Province, Karen Gabrielyan, had given one week for experts to present their finding and had said that after reviewing those findings will bring any wrongdoers to justice.

In response to Azatutyun.am’s inquiries, the prosecutor’s office said that it still has not received the reports.

Evidently, during the three-year probe, investigators have not been able to document exactly what and how much did Samvel Darbinyan take from the Soviet-era waste water treatment plant.

Prosecutors told Azatutyun.am that no charges have been filed against anyone regarding this case.