ArmInfo.Former Minister of Finance of Armenia Gagik Khachatryan is at the National Security Service at the moment; in the closest time he will be detained on charges of embezzlement on an especially large scale and abuse of office. The NSS Director Arthur Vanetsyan informed journalists about this.
According to him, the question is about tens of millions of dollars that Khachatryan wasted during his tenure in various positions. He also did not rule out that a charge would be added. Vanetsyan said that the checks were carried out and various abuses were revealed in businesses belonging to Khachatryan.
He noted that since the morning in the territories belonging to Khachatryan and his family, NSS officers have been conducting searches, which have not yet been completed. At present, according to him, the search in Khachatryan's Tsakhkadzor villa is nearing completion, Artur Vanetsyan said. "According to the results of the searches Khachatryan will be charged and he will be detained," Vanetsyan said, adding that Khachatryan had previously been invited to the NSS for questioning several times.
According to Vanetsyan, a relative of Gagik Khachatryan, Karen Khachatryan, is also going through the case. He will also be detained. Karen Khachatryan worked at the SRC under the leadership of Gagik Khachatryan. As for the sons of Khachatryan, who are large entrepreneurs, according to the head of the National Security Service, no charges have been brought against them.
In parallel, a criminal case was opened against Khachatryan in the Special Investigation Service. At the same time, Vanetsyan put the case that both cases will be merged into one proceeding, since several cases cannot be initiated against one person. It should be noted that Gagik Khachatryan in different years (both under the presidency of Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan) held high positions in the government of Armenia. In particular, he headed the SRC of the Republic of Armenia and subsequently served as Minister of Finance. Various large businesses in Armenia and abroad are affiliated with the name of Khachatryan.