ArmInfo.The court decided to arrest former Minister of Nature Protection Aram Harutyunyan, who is accused of receiving a bribe of $ 14 million for the provision of licenses for the exploitation of mines.
According to the lawyer of former minister Karen Hakobyan, Aram Harutyunyan does not plead guilty. In general, according to him, the accusation against him is absurd, since the legislation of the republic implies a rather simplified procedure for obtaining licenses to operate mines, "therefore there is no reason to give a bribe of $ 14 million for these papers simply does not exist." He also stated that earlier statements on this case, including from the mouth of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, negatively affect the entire process.
The lawyer also said that Aram Harutyunyan who had not previously been treated as a defendant in the case, had been illegally forbidden by the investigating authorities to leave the republic, meanwhile, he wanted to go abroad to treat his sick wife. However, Harutyunyan is currently being sought.
To note, former Minister of Nature Protection of Armenia Aram Harutyunyan is accused of taking bribes on a large scale. As reported by the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia, Harutyunyan is charged under paragraph 4 of Part 2 of Art. 311 (receiving a bribe by an official in especially large amounts for knowingly unlawful action or inaction in favor of the bribe giver or the person he represents) and p. 1 part 3 of art. 190 (legalization of income in especially large amounts obtained by illegal means) of the Criminal Code of Armenia.
Harutyunyan received a bribe from a businessman in the amount of $ 14 million to provide a license to operate the mines: 6 million were transferred through people close to the minister in cash, and 8 million were transferred to different accounts in the UAE. After that, Harutyunyan transferred the money to a Swiss bank and began to transfer it in small amounts on the accounts of the company, which belongs to a person close to him and conducts entrepreneurial activity in Armenia. Aram Harutyunyan is wanted.