Samvel Mayrapetyan Refuses to Return Illegally Acquired 2 Hectares of Forest to the State

Businessman Samvel Mayrapetyan's case regarding the appropriation of 2 hectares of forest in the village of Artavaz, Kotayk Province, in 2007 is currently at the Anti-Corruption Civil Court, according to Hetq.

The Office of the Prosecutor General is demanding that the court annul the decision made by the Kotayk Governor in 2007, which authorized the sale of the state-owned land to Samvel Mayrapetyan.

During the preliminary investigation, it was revealed that officials had illegally appropriated forests not only in Tsaghkadzor but also in other communities throughout the Kotayk Province.

The 2 hectares of forest land adjacent to the Marmarik reservoir was purchased by Samvel Mayrapetyan for merely 2 million 240 thousand drams, while the starting price of the land was set at 2 million 220 thousand drams. After being declared the winner of the auction, a purchase agreement was concluded between the businessman and the Kotayk Province administration, which was later registered with the Cadastre Committee.

Samvel Mayrapetyan remains the owner of the land parcel to this day. Notably, his purchased land is located next to another parcel that was also illegally appropriated by Karen Margaryan, the Secretary General of the Investigative Committee.

Currently sought by law enforcement for another case, Samvel Mayrapetyan has stated that he does not intend to return the illegally acquired 2 hectares of forest to the state. Furthermore, through his representatives, he has petitioned the court to apply the statute of limitations, arguing that the state had failed to protect its rights in a timely manner.