NSS issued statement regarding Naira Zohrabyan and election bribes in  2017

ArmInfo.The National Security Service issued a statement regarding RA MP  Naira Zohrabyan and the election campaign of Prosperous Armenia party in 2017.

According to the report, as part of the investigative measures,  information was received that state officials, through the organized  criminal mechanism, before and after the elections to the Council of  Elders of Yerevan, scheduled for May 14, 2017, persuade about 100-120  thousand RA citizens with the right to vote, temporarily leave their  places of registration and formally move to Yerevan in violation of  the requirements established by the legislation of the Republic of  Armenia and other legal acts, as well as using false documents. To  this end, citizens were persuaded through the provision of material  assistance or other illegal means. Further, having moved to Yerevan  and registered in various administrative districts of the capital,  which are not actually their temporary or permanent place of  residence, the abovementioned persons were included in the voters  list, and thus ensured the requisite amount of votes for the  elections to the Council of Elders Yerevan. Immediately after the  completion of the election, these persons were again transferred and  registered in real places of their residence

In addition, evidence was obtained that members of the Prosperous  Armenia Party founded on April 30, 2004, participating in  parliamentary and local government elections held in different years  in the Republic of Armenia in order to secure votes for their party,  personally or through various intermediaries, they provided voters  with money, property or any advantage as a bribe.

On June 15, 2020, a criminal case was opened in the investigation  department of the National Security Council of the Republic of  Armenia on the grounds of part 2 of article 308, clause 2, 4 and 5 of  part 2 of article 149, part 2 of article 154.2 of the Criminal Code  of the Republic of Armenia; large-scale investigative and procedural  actions and operational investigative measures are being taken.  A  preliminary investigation in the criminal case obtained irrefutable  evidence that MP from the Prosperous Armenia Party,  chairof the NA  Standing Committee on Human Rights and Public Affairs, Naira  Zohrabyan, in 2018 during a conversation with like-minded people in  connection with the election results, following the revolution in the  Republic of Armenia in May, repeatedly voiced insulting remarks  regarding thousands of citizens freely expressing their will, calling  them rams, sectarians.

Moreover, it was also found out by the operational-search measures  that Naira Zohrabyan, during conversations with the same like-minded  people, repeatedly recognized the fact that the Prosperous Armenia  party in the elections held in previous years was able to secure the  required number of votes solely as a result of the distribution of  bribes to RA citizens, stating the following: <... it turned out that  without election bribes the PAP has no votes... we must face the  truth: this is the reality>.  From the conversations it also becomes  clear that Zohrabyan and her associates acknowledge that as a result  of the non-application of mechanisms for distributing bribes after  the revolution, their party was no longer able to provide the  required number of votes.  

To recall, in the morning of June 14 searches were carried out in the  house of Tsarukyan. Then he went to the NSS for questioning. By  chance or not, the former Chairman of the Control  Chamber Ishkhan  Zakaryan, who was in close relations with Gagik Tsarukyan, was also  summoned to the NSS. Tsarukyan called the developments political  persecution, meanwhile, the NSS reported three criminal cases  involving the politician. So, according to the investigation, the  leadership and other members of the Prosperous Armenia party  distributed hundreds of millions of drams of election bribes in 2017  in accordance with well- developed schemes, and this was done under  the pretext of charity.  In another case, Tsarukyan's companies were  involved in the organization of the casino's illegal activities,  resulting in damage to the state of $ 60 million. Another criminal  case concerns a company associated with Tsarukyan, which illegally  appropriated land, and the state suffered damage of 342 million drams  (about 685 thousand dollars).  Yesterday, after calling Tsarukyan for  questioning, a number of his supporters took to the streets and made  attempts to block the movement. In respect of 252 persons,  administrative detention was applied.