The case against the Kocharyan father and son concerns solely financial charges and there are no grounds for keeping them in custody, according to a statement.

ArmInfo. The case of father and son Robert and Sedrak Kocharyan, regardless of its groundlessness and illegality, concerns solely financial charges, and there are no grounds for allegations of a risk of obstructing the preliminary investigation.

This is stated in a statement published on the social media page of the second President of Armenia, Robert Kocharyan. The statement recalls that the case is based on financial documents that have already been seized, decrypted, and examined. "Now the question is: how, after 15, 20, or 25 years, can one change the regulations in effect at that time, bank statements, documents of the Cadastre Committee, published government decisions, or their duly approved presidential decisions? "Prosecutor Tsovak Mnatsakanyan and investigator Smbat Mkhitaryan have still not publicly explained how exactly the Kocharyans could obstruct the investigation and why it is necessary to keep them in custody," the statement reads. In this regard, it is recalled that, starting in 2022, in addition to pretrial detention, numerous alternative pretrial detention measures have been provided. The question of pretrial detention may only be considered if there are specific grounds excluding the use of these alternative measures. "To date, not a single piece of information, not a single fact, or even a reasonable assumption has been presented that would explain why the use of other pretrial detention measures was excluded. On October 22, the Anti-Corruption Court will hold hearings that were postponed the day before. The court will consider the prosecutor's office's motion to extend the illegal arrest of the Kocharyan father and son for another two months. "The hearing on Robert Kocharyan's case will take place at 4:30 PM under the chairmanship of Judge Vardges Stepanyan," the statement continued.

As a reminder, on August 25, National Security Council officers conducted searches of the apartment of Levon Kocharyan, an MP from the opposition Armenia faction and the son of second President Robert Kocharyan, and of companies affiliated with the Kocharyan family. Robert Kocharyan and Sedrak Kocharyan were then detained and taken to the Anti-Corruption Committee for questioning. Robert Kocharyan was charged that same day with large-scale money laundering, abuse of office (in connection with the ratification of government decisions - ed.), and accepting a large bribe. Nine other individuals were also charged in the case. On August 27, the Anti-Corruption Court ordered Kocharyan's arrest for two months.

It should be added that the political forces of Armenia's second president associate his arrest with an attempt to neutralize one of the main opposition figures amid the Armenian government's readiness to make further concessions to Azerbaijan.