Armenian suspected of smuggling weapons handed over to US

Armenian suspected of smuggling weapons handed over to US

Agence France Presse — English
April 18, 2005 Monday 9:14 PM GMT

YEREVAN April 18 — An Armenian national suspected of taking part in
a weapons smuggling plot uncovered last month was handed over to US
authorities last week, the US embassy said in a statement late Monday.

Armen Barseghyan, who is accused of photographing weapons and
ammunition at an Armenian military base and sending them by e-mail to
US contacts, is due to appear in a US court this week, the embassy
said.

“This is a bright example of US-Armenian cooperation on security
issues,” the embassy said.

The United States announced last month that it would prosecute 18
people suspected of attempting to bring illegal assault weapons from
eastern Europe across US borders. Armenia arrested three suspects a
week later.

No arms or ammunition disappeared off the military base targeted by
the accomplices, the Armenian military said.