Armenian Prosecutor General`s Office reports fraud in especially  large within construction of North- South transport corridor

ArmInfo.General Prosecutor's Office of Armenia provided details of the criminal case on the fact inefficient use of financial resources and abuse of official position  in the construction of the North-South highway.

"During the preliminary investigation, it was reported that within  the framework of the construction of the Yerevan-Artashat and  Yerevan-Ashtarak highway section on Tranche 1, the program manager  (representative of the French team) exercising technical control, in  preliminary agreement with the management team of the Spanish  contracting company the organization, as well as with the officials  of SNCO, the Organization for the Implementation of Transport  Programs and the Ministry of Transport, Communications and IT, in  January-June 2016, included in the documentation on interim payments  false (binary) data, as a result of fraud amount was kidnapped in the  amount of $ 1,9mln. With regard to the head of the French team on the  grounds of paragraph 1, part 3, art. 178th RA Criminal Code (Fraud  committed on a particularly large scale, ed.) On suspicion of  committing a criminal act, a preventive measure was chosen in the  form of a written undertaking not to leave. He is in the status of a  suspect. The preliminary investigation is continuing", in the message  of the Prosecutor General reads.

Earlier, ArmInfo reported that, on the basis of these facts, on  September 4, 2018, the Prosecutor General's Office of Armenia opened  a criminal case on the grounds of part 2 of Article 308 (Abuse of  office, resulting in serious consequences due to negligence). The  pre-trial procedure of the case is carried out by the General  Directorate for Especially Important Cases of the Investigative  Committee of the Republic of Armenia

According to the General Prosecutor's Office, as a result of a  comprehensive study of the materials, it was revealed that officials  involved in the development and implementation of the North-South  Transport Corridor program during 2009-2018 in order to conceal facts  indicating a clear ineffective management of the Program, forming an  illusion about the implementation of the Program in accordance with  its goals and objectives, based on personal and group interests, used  official position to the detriment of official obligations, resulting  in harm to the legitimate interests of the state and society , which  led to serious consequences.

In particular, about nine years in violation of the scheduled dates,  the construction work of the North-South highway was not completed,  the objectives and results expected from the program by citizens, the  public and the state in reducing the transportation time, forming a  safe, high-quality highway and development economy and business  connections. Moreover, in the property sense, the state was damaged  at 23.553.817.000 drams (about $ 48.69 million).

It was reported that in some cases, including in contracts for the  provision of advisory services, a price twice the amount set forth in  legal acts, unreasonably and groundlessly making changes in the  content and value of contracts, they raised prices, and added to the  services provided or not work. As a result, consulting organizations  were paid amounts in excess of the agreed amount. In addition, no  measures were taken to comply with the composition and quality of  standards and standards of building materials, in particular, cement,  as well as to implement day-to-day monitoring of the implementation  of works. As a result, despite changes in the building document, as  well as obvious deficiencies in construction and concrete pavement,  the sections of the Yerevan-Artashat and Yerevan-Ashtarak highway on  Tranche were commissioned.