Prosecutor General Artur Davtyan has filed a motion with the National Assembly to initiate criminal prosecution against MP Gagik Tsarukyan, to involve him as a defendant, to bring charges against him, and also to deprive him of liberty. The Prosecutor’s Office reports this.
“Through the preliminary investigation of the criminal case initiated on 1 February 2020 in the Investigative Department of the National Security Service and currently under investigation, a sufficient body of evidence has been obtained, which substantiates that Gagik Tsarukyan, being the leader of the ‘Tsarukyan’ alliance of parties and the chairman of the ‘Prosperous Armenia’ party included in it, in the period preceding the elections, with the aim of bribing voters to vote in favour of the alliance of parties operating under his leadership and the candidates included in the electoral lists at the 2 April 2017 elections to the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, created and led an organised group, which included employees of the central and territorial bodies of the ‘Tsarukyan’ alliance of parties and the ‘Prosperous Armenia’ party, as well as other persons,” the Prosecutor’s Office statement reads.
Therefore, in order to ensure the systematic and effective activity of the organised group, a system for managing financial resources and monitoring the activities of the members of the organised group was operated, reports were drawn up reflecting the financial resources provided, the expenses to be made or made at their expense, while in the lists drawn up regarding the bribes given to voters, their names and surnames, passport data, the number of family members and the corresponding amount to be provided — 10,000 drams per person — were indicated.
Through the members of the organised group, in the period preceding the elections, at the expense of funds provided by Gagik Tsarukyan and the members of the organised group, according to the Prosecutor’s Office, for voting in favour of the alliance of political parties and its nominated candidate, voters in the territory of Gegharkunik Province were given bribes totalling 171 million 940 thousand drams for 17,194 votes.
Taking into account that the body of evidence obtained in the criminal case provides sufficient grounds to involve MP Gagik Tsarukyan as a defendant in this case and to bring charges against him for organising the giving of bribes to voters to vote in favour of the ‘Tsarukyan’ alliance of parties that participated in the National Assembly elections and its nominated candidate, Prosecutor General Artur Davtyan has applied to the National Assembly for consent to initiate criminal prosecution against Gagik Tsarukyan, to involve him as a defendant, to bring charges against him, and also to deprive him of liberty.
