Thursday, October 21 2021 18:55

ArmInfo. Deputy Head of the Special Investigation Service (SIS), Advisor of Justice of the 1st Class Mushegh Babayan was appointed Acting Deputy Head of the Anti-  Corruption Committee.

According to the official website of the Armenian government, the  decision on his dismissal from the post of deputy head of the SIS and  appointment to the post of deputy chairman of the Committee was  signed by Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan on October 21.

Mushegh Babayan, Senior Investigator for Especially Important Cases,  was relieved of his post and appointed Deputy Head of the Special  Investigation Service on February 20, 2014. By the order of the  President of the Republic of Armenia dated November 21, 2013, he was  awarded the Mkhitar Gosh medal.

To recall, in March 2021, the parliament in the second and final  reading adopted the package of bills submitted by the government "On  the Anti-Corruption Committee" and related projects, which also  provide for the abolition of the Special Investigative Service.

As then Minister of Justice of the Republic of Armenia Rustam  Badasyan noted in his speech, appointments to the new body, including  to leadership positions, will be made within the framework of an open  competition. At the same time, as the minister noted, for the  employees of the committee, in contrast to employees of other  investigative bodies, stricter requirements and restrictions will be  introduced.  Accordingly, they will be provided with additional  guarantees for the full implementation of their activities.  As a  result, according to the former head of the Ministry of Justice,  staff reductions will begin in a number of bosdies that previously,  within the framework of their powers, were engaged in combating and  countering corruption. In particular, this includes the National  Security Service, the Special Investigative Service, the  Investigative Committee and the State Revenue Committee. These  employees are planned to be merged into the new body- Anti-Corruption  Committee. The number of employees of the new department will be  about 150 people, including at least 30 investigators and 60  detectives.

The new single body for identifying and investigating corruption  crimes, which since September 16 has been headed by former head of  the SIS Sasun Khachatryan, will carry out, among other things,  operational- search activities.