Justice Minister: Nairi Hunanyan will most likely remain behind bars 

ArmInfo.Nairi Hunanyan will most likely remain behind bars. This opinion was expressed by the Minister of Justice of Armenia Rustam Badasyan on October 23 during a government hour commenting on the request of Nairi Hunanyan on parole.

According to him, several scenarios are possible in connection with  the issue. "The first scenario: if both the Probation Service and the  Prison Service, in theory, give a positive opinion, the corresponding  petition is submitted to the court. If one of the two structures  gives a positive opinion and one negative, then with the written  consent of the convicted person, the issue can be discussed in  court," he explained.

If both structures give a negative conclusion, the discussion of the  issue is considered rejected. "In this case, the Prison Service has  already given a negative conclusion. Given that the Probation Service  will be guided by the same criteria, I think that the conclusion is  clear," the minister said.

To recall, earlier an Armenian journalist, a former member of the ARF  Dashnaktsutyun Nairi Hunanyan, who led the attack on the Armenian  parliament in 1999, sent a request for parole. As the head of the  public relations department of the Penitentiary Service of the  Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia Nona Navikyan said, he  filed an application for early release about two weeks ago and it is  now under consideration. She recalled that he had the right to do so,  since according to the legislation of the Republic of Armenia, after  20 years of serving a sentence, a person sentenced to life  imprisonment can send such a request. The issue regarding the  statement of Hunanyan will be resolved in the manner prescribed by  law - in the 80-day period.

It should be noted that Hunanyan was sentenced to life imprisonment  and is serving a sentence in the Yerevan Kentron colony. On October  27, 1999, a group of terrorists burst into parliament and shot and  killed the Prime Minister of Armenia Vazgen Sargsyan, the Speaker of  the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, Karen Demirchyan,  the Vice-Speakers Yuri Bakhshyan and Ruben Miroyan, the Minister of  Operational Affairs Leonard Petrosyan and the lawmakers Armenak  Armenakyan, Mikael Kotanyan and Henrik Abrahamyan.

The terrorist group included former journalist Nairi Hunanyan, who  worked for some time on television in Armenia, his brother Karen  Hunanyan, their uncle Vram Galstyan, as well as Derenik Bejanyan and  Ashot Knyazyan. Their trial began on February 15, 2001. On December  2, 2003, the Center-Nork-Marash trial court sentenced Nairi and Karen  Hunanyan brothers, Edik Grigoryan, Vram Galstyan (in 2004, according  to the official version, committed suicide), Derenik Bejanyan and  Ashot Knyazyan to lifeimprisonment.  Hamlet Stepanyan was sentenced  to 14 years in prison (in May 2010, his body was found in his bed at  the Nubarashen detention center). All seven were found guilty of  treason and terrorism.