Vahagn Vermishyan Detained

The court has granted the investigator's request to detain Vahagn Vermishyan, the head of the Urban Development Committee of Armenia. This was reported to NEWS.am by the press service of the National Security Service (NSS).

Earlier, it was announced that the NSS had received factual data indicating that the head of the Urban Development Committee had received bribes in five instances, amounting to between 1,000,000 and 2,500,000 AMD, during 2019, in exchange for taking actions or facilitating the rapid decision-making and provision of favorable decisions.

In order to disguise the receipt of bribes, and in violation of the prohibition established by law on engaging in entrepreneurial activities, he founded a design work company in the name of an associate and directed developers and individuals who approached him to conduct transactions with this company, taking steps to secure favorable decisions from state and local government bodies based on the documents prepared by the company.

Additionally, on October 23, 2019, during a meeting in his office, the head of the Urban Development Committee reached an agreement with the owner of several construction companies to nominate him for the title of “Honored Builder of Armenia,” receiving as a bribe the equivalent of 5000 USD and construction materials worth approximately 2,300,000 AMD.

In connection with apparent criminal acts under the relevant articles of the Criminal Code of Armenia, a criminal case has been initiated by the investigative department of the NSS. Individuals suspected of committing the alleged crime have been taken into custody, two of whom—including the aforementioned committee head—have been arrested. Notably, the official who received the bribe confessed to the commission of the crime during interrogation.

The pre-investigation continues.