ArmInfo. "Food Bringer" Arthur Sargsyan, who died on March 16, said in a note that judge A. Mkrtchyan and Ed. Hakobyan, deputy head of the Special Investigative Service division of corruption, organized and official crimes, forced him with their actions to go on hunger strike.
In his death note, Sargsyan said that Ed.Hakobyan's petition on choosing arrest as a measure of restraint against Sargsyan without taking into account Sargsyan's grave health condition was illegal. So, judge A.Mkrtchyan's decision to satisfy that petition also ran counter to Armenian legislation. "In this light, I am going on hunger strike. I also state that if my health condition deteriorates, Hakobyan and Mkrtchyan will bear the responsibility for that, because they forced me to do that with their actions," Sargsyan stressed.
To remind, Arthur Sargsyan, the man who delivered food in summer 2016 to the Sasna Tsrer (Daredevils of Sassoon) group occupying a police compound in Yerevan, died on March 16 ten days after being released from prison following a 25-day hunger strike. He passed away at Armenia Medical Center in Yerevan, where he underwent bowel surgery the previous night. To recall, in July 2016 Sargsyan drove his car through a police cordon to deliver food to the armed members of Sasna Tsrer group during their two-week standoff with security forces. He surrendered to them on July 31 along with the remaining group members holed up in the compound. Sargsyan was arrested and charged with aiding the Sasna Tsrer group. Armenia's Special Investigative Service agreed on December 31 to free him pending trial due to his deteriorating health condition. The suspect suffered from several chronic diseases. The Special Investigative Service (SIS) again detained him on February 9, saying that he ignored a summons from SIS officials investigating the standoff which left three police officers dead. Sargsyan went on a hunger strike in protest against his detention. The Office of the Prosecutor-General ordered Sargsyan's release after opposition parliamentarians posted bail for him on March 6. He was transported from a prison hospital to the Armenia Medical Center.
Several political forces of Armenia directly blame the authorities for Sargsyan's death. Yesterday hundreds of people held a march in the center of Yerevan. They demanded punishing the culprits.