Life-termer dies at penitentiary 

ArmInfo. Ashot Knyazyan, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in the "October 27" case, died in the  Nubarashen Penitentiary, Nona Navikyan, head of the public relations department of the Penitentiary Service, told the Armenian service of Radio Liberty. 

"On August 26, at about 19:05, an ambulance was called due to the  deterioration of the health of A.K., born in 1959, sentenced to life  imprisonment in the Nubarashen correctional facility of the RA  Ministry of Justice. The ambulance doctors recorded the biological  death of A.K. at about 19:35," the UIS reported.

On October 27, 1999, a group of terrorists, having burst into the  parliamentary session hall, shot point- blank at the leaders and  members of the Armenian parliament and government who were there.

The victims of the terrorists were the Prime Minister of Armenia  Vazgen Sargsyan, the Speaker of the Parliament Karen Demirchyan, the  Vice Speakers Yuri Bakhshyan and Ruben Miroyan, the Minister of  Operational Issues Leonard Petrosyan, the members of the Parliament  Armenak Armenakyan, Henrikh Abrahamyan, Mikael Kotanyan. The trial of  the terrorists lasted from 2001 to 2003. The prosecution demanded the  death penalty, but the death penalty was abolished in Armenia in  September 2003 in accordance with the commitments to the Council of  Europe. Six terrorists were sentenced to life imprisonment, including  the leader of the group, former journalist Nairi Hunanyan, his  brother Karen Hunanyan, their uncle Vram Galstyan, as well as Derenik  Bejanyan, Edik Grigoryan and Ashot Knyazyan.  Another member of the  group, Hamlet Stepanyan, was sentenced to 14 years in prison. All  seven were found guilty under a number of articles of the Criminal  Code of Armenia, including treason, terrorism, and committing  especially dangerous state crimes. According to the official version,  Vram Galstyan committed suicide in a solitary confinement cell at the  Nubarashen Penitentiary on April 27, 2004. Hamlet Stepanyan,  sentenced to 14 years in prison, died in May 2010 of a heart attack.  One of the defendants in the case, Norayr Yeghiazaryan, died before  the verdict was passed as a result of an electric shock in a cell at  the Nubarashen Penitentiary. On November 3, 2017, Edik Grigoryan died  in prison due to heart problems.