Eleven Years Later, Member of €10.9 Million Fraud Group Found

On September 28, 2013, during the preliminary investigation of a criminal case, evidence was gathered confirming that citizens of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Armenia, with the intention of fraudulently misappropriating a total of €10,980,000 transferred to a bank operating in Armenia, had previously reached an agreement with the bank manager and his deputy. They used fictitious loan agreements and documents allegedly between companies to put this money into circulation.

According to the investigation, on August 1, 2012, €1 million was transferred by a member of the criminal group to a company’s account managed by him, and subsequently to the company’s account opened in the bank. Following that, based on the circulated false documents, the remaining amount of €9,980,000 was transferred on October 3, 2012, to the account of another company associated with them, and in March 2013, this amount was transferred to the company’s bank account. Subsequently, part of the money was cashed out, while the rest was transferred to the bank accounts of individuals involved in the criminal scheme, resulting in a fraudulent appropriation of €10,980,000 equivalent to 5,804,577,000 Armenian drams from August 2012 to March 2013 using false documents, along with large-scale money laundering.

On January 27, 2015, V.M. and other individuals involved in the criminal scheme were charged under articles 325(2) (forgery of documents), 178(3)(1) (large-scale fraud), and 190(3)(1) (large-scale money laundering) of the Criminal Code adopted on April 18, 2003, and were announced as wanted. As a result of measures taken by the law enforcement agencies of Armenia, V.M., who had been wanted for about 11 years, was located and arrested in Russia, and was extradited to Armenia on June 18, 2026.

During the preliminary investigation, a new public criminal prosecution against V.M. was initiated based on the relevant articles of the Criminal Code, and house arrest was imposed as a preventive measure. The indictment regarding V.M. has been sent to the supervising prosecutor. It should be noted that the criminal cases against A.K. and M.E., also involved in this criminal scheme, were sent to court in 2014, resulting in their conviction and imprisonment.

Notice: The accused in the crime is considered innocent until proven guilty in the manner prescribed by the Criminal Procedure Code by a judgment that has entered into legal force.