ArmInfo.The National Security Service of Armenia released new details on the case of the detention of the criminal authority Artur Asatryan known as "Don Pipo".
As reported by the press center of the National Security Service of Armenia, earlier, on May 23, 2017, a criminal case was opened into the preparation of the murder of Artur Asatryan. Three of the four defendants in the crime at the initial stage of the investigation said that on May 21, 2017 they were abducted and three days were illegally detained in various places in the city of Etchmiadzin, where they were beaten, they were asked to confess to who the customer of the murder was.
On June 1, 2017, a new criminal case was initiated into the abduction of these people. During the preliminary investigation, a number of data were received confirming the kidnapping, including a video recording was found in the phone of one of the abductees, from which it follows that the abductors of captive persons, voicing threats, demanded to name of the one who ordered the murder, and the questions were voiced by a person named Pipo.
The body that conducts the proceedings, people who were abducted and accused of preparing the murder, many times offered to give detailed testimony about the circumstances of the abduction, the perpetrators and the organizers, but for one reason or another they refrained from giving evidence and participating in investigative actions. Despite this circumstance, after the case on the episode of the preparation of the murder with the indictment was sent to the court, active investigative actions regarding the kidnapping were continued, and appropriate operational and investigative measures were also taken. "As a result, on June 16, 2018, during a search in Arthur Asatryan's mansion in Echmiadzin, a large number of illegally stored weapons and ammunition were found, in particular two AK-74s loaded with 56 cartridges, one TT gun, 7.62-mm caliber loaded with 8 cartridges, a 9 mm pistol loaded with 10 cartridges, two Beretta pistols of 9 mm caliber, loaded with 34 cartridges, a Colt drum cartridge, the SNB press center reports. Arthur Asatryan was subjected to a drive and detained on suspicion of committing the offense provided for in paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 6 of Article 131 of the Criminal Code (Abduction of three persons committed by a group of persons by prior conspiracy, with the use of violence dangerous to life or health, or with the threat of it and with the use of weapons or items used as weapons) and part 2 of Article 235 (Illegal acquisition, sale, storage, transportation or carrying of weapons, ammunition, explosives or explosive devices committed by a group of persons by prior conspiracy) . Within the framework of the same criminal case, another four people were detained, who are citizens of Russia, presumed to be Asatryan's bodyguards, who, by preliminary conspiracy with the latter, illegally stored the weapons and ammunition they found. "The body that is carrying out the production, in order to ensure a comprehensive, complete and objective investigation today, also expects that the abducted persons, however, will give exhaustive testimony of the relative event," the RA National Security Service said.