Uncovering Cases of 1.5 Million Dram Bribes Received by State Revenue Committee Officers

The Operational-Investigative Department of the Anti-Corruption Committee of Armenia has revealed serious cases of bribery involving two senior officers of the State Revenue Committee. These officers allegedly received a total of 1,500,000 Armenian Drams from businesses to overlook violations of tax legislation.

Specifically, the investigation has established that in October 2023, Senior Officer K. A. and his colleague, Senior Officer V. A., discovered apparent violations related to the tax legislation requirements by an individual entrepreneur concerning the volume of sales. To avoid operational-investigative measures and to help the entrepreneur evade responsibility in case of future audits, the aforementioned officials demanded and received a bribe of 1,000,000 Armenian Drams from the entrepreneur on December 29, 2023, which they subsequently divided between themselves.

Additionally, during the period from October to December 2023, these officials also identified apparent violations of the tax legislation requirements in another company owned by a different entrepreneur, in this case concerning the underreporting of salaries. Following this, the entrepreneur sought the help of his friend, former SRC employee A. H., to resolve the issue. A. H. then approached Senior Officer K. A., who demanded a bribe of 500,000 Armenian Drams in exchange for not conducting operational-investigative measures against the company's apparent violations and for not taking any actions that would hold the company accountable.

A. H. accepted the bribe offer and promised to provide the requested amount. Senior Officers K. A. and V. A. have been charged under Article 435, Part 3, Point 2 of the RA Criminal Code, while A. H. and one of the business operators have been charged under Article 436, Part 2, Point 3 and Article 436, Part 2 Points 2 and 3 for giving bribes to the SRC officials. A. K. has been placed under pre-trial detention as a measure of restraint. The pre-trial investigation has been completed, and the materials of the case have been forwarded to the court for substantive examination.

Note: A person charged with a crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty according to the rules established by the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Armenia, by a legally binding court verdict.