Court Issues Ruling in Serzh Sargsyan Case

The prosecutor Arsen Martirosyan, representing the charges against Serzh Sargsyan, will not be removed from the proceedings. The decision was announced by judge Vahe Misakyan of the Avan and Nor Nork court in Yerevan upon returning from the deliberation room, rejecting the motion filed by Sargsyan's defense team.

Judge Misakyan also stated that due to heavy workload, today's court session will be postponed. It should be reminded that the defense had submitted a motion for the disqualification of the prosecutor, citing alleged bias as the reason.

In response to the judge's question, Serzh Sargsyan indicated that he supports his defense's motion. It is noteworthy that within the scope of the case, criminal charges have been brought against Serzh Sargsyan, Barseq Beglaryan, Samvel Galstyan, and Gevorg Harutyunyan under Article 38-179, Part 3, Clause 1 of the RA Criminal Code, related to organizing, inciting, or assisting in large-scale embezzlement or misappropriation. Sergoh Karapetyan is charged under Article 179, Part 3, Clause 1 for large-scale embezzlement or misappropriation.

According to the SIS statement, under the organization of Serzh Sargsyan and the prompting of Barseq Beglaryan, with the assistance of Samvel Galstyan and Gevorg Harutyunyan, Sergoh Karapetyan reportedly misappropriated through the government reserve fund 489 million drams allocated for subsidies during the implementation of state support programs for 15,391,765 liters of diesel fuel between January 25 and February 7, 2013.

Serzh Sargsyan denies the charges brought against him. His attorney, Amram Makinyan, asserts that the accusations are fabricated. Additionally, on the day the trial commenced, the Republican Party of Armenia issued a statement claiming that the case is directed and ordered, and has political motivations.