A court in Armenia has extended for two months, the pre-trial detention period of Armenian-Russian billionaire and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s rival Samvel Karapetyan.
Karapetyan, 60, faces charges of incitement to seize power and financial crimes and has been in custody since June after being detained following his statement in support of the Armenian Apostolic Church, which he claimed was under government pressure. Following Karapetyan’s remarks, Nikol Pashinyan posted Facebook messages, addressing the “depraved clergy and their benefactors”. His remarks raised speculations that Karapetyan’s detention was politically motivated.
Armenia’s Investigative Committee offered to extend Karapetyan’s detention, citing a risk of interference with the ongoing investigation. Karapetyan’s lawyer Liana Gasparyan said on Tuesday that her client rejected accusations levelled against him. “Mr Karapetyan stated clearly that he has no involvement in any of these matters, does not accept the charges, and has neither motive nor means to interfere,” Gasparyan said outside the courtroom. Defence attorney Aram Vardevanyan criticised the decision as unjustified, calling it a “legal mockery”.
Defense attorneys contend that the original grounds for Karapetyan’s arrest — allegations of inciting the seizure of power — are no longer valid under Armenia’s criminal procedure code, leaving only the financial accusations in place. Gasparyan noted that a recent Court of Cassation decision allowed prosecutors to continue holding Karapetyan on money-laundering charges.
Earlier on Monday, Armenia’s Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) voted to revoke the electricity distribution licence of the country’s main power grid operator, the Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA), owned by Samvel Karapetyan’s Tashir Group.
