ArmInfo. The Anti-Corruption Committee of Armenia reports that during the preliminary investigation it was established that Hovik Abrahamyan, holding the positions of Minister of Territorial Administration of the Republic of Armenia, Chief of Staff of the President and Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia, using his position and influence on state bodies and local government bodies, ordered the organization of illegal auctions. As a result, Abrahamyan acquired land plots with a total area of about 75,000 square meters in the Dilijan community of Tavush region, arable land and pastures with a total area of 120 hectares in the Narek community of Ararat region and land plots with a total area of 48.4092 hectares in the Mkhchyan community.
Thus, the above-mentioned real estate objects, acquired at a price significantly lower than the market value, were seized from the property fund of the communities without legal grounds. Then, in order to conceal the criminal origin of the said real estate, the market value of which is approximately 240 million drams, O.A. ensured that they were registered in the name of his relatives, and then, as a result of fictitious transactions, registered a significant part of the real estate in the name of his wife, as well as the company he managed, actually managing and owning them.
In addition, the former high-ranking official was illegally engaged in entrepreneurial activity by sponsoring commercial organizations engaged in illegal sand mining, including the company Metzn Hovnan LLC, created in the name of a person affiliated with him. In particular, O. A., in the period 2006-2016, based on personal motives to take over the company Avazahatik LLC, which was engaged in sand mining in the territory adjacent to the site allocated to the above-mentioned company, in fact, to merge the two companies and, as a result, carry out more profitable business activities, during 2008-2015, through his brother, his son and other persons, participated in the management of the two above-mentioned companies engaged in sand mining, and received a particularly large profit of about 230 million drams from the operation of the sand quarry of Avazahatik LLC.
Then, in order to conceal the criminal origin of the property acquired as a result of illegal participation in entrepreneurial activity, O.A. mixed the above-mentioned amount with his other income, and then gave it a legal appearance through various civil law transactions, including the acquisition of various property and the performance of various banking operations.
In addition, the preliminary investigation revealed that O. A. did not take effective measures to prevent illegal sand mining by a company affiliated with him in violation of the established procedure. In particular, during the period of 2014-2016 and in the subsequent period, the above-mentioned person affiliated with O. A. did not use the land in accordance with the coordinates of the site granted with the right to subsoil use, but extracted river sand also directly from the bed of the crater section of the Araks River, deepening its bottom by about two meters. As a result of the above-mentioned actions, soil degradation occurred in the adjacent territory of the sand washing plant on an area of 5950 sq.m., as a result of which the main bed of the Araks River, located on the corresponding section of the state border of the Republic of Armenia, with a length of about 6 km, changed and dried up, forming an island with an area of 307.82 hectares near the border.
For committing the above-mentioned criminal acts, O. A. charged with abuse of office, exceeding official powers, illegal participation in entrepreneurial activity and legalization (laundering) of property obtained by criminal means on an especially large scale using official position.
During the preliminary investigation, the property of the accused and persons affiliated with him was seized. The preliminary investigation of the criminal case has been completed. The materials of the criminal case along with the indictment have been sent to the supervising prosecutor with a motion to approve it and send it to court.
According to Hetq, the Prosecutor General's Office has applied to the Anti-Corruption Court with a demand to invalidate the sale of land in the village of Mkhchyan in the Ararat region to members of the family of former Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan. Three lawsuits have been filed against the enlarged community of Artashat (which includes the village of Mkhchyan). Two of them concern the sale of land to the son of the former prime minister, Argam Abrahamyan. Another one concerns the sale of land to his wife, Juliette Abrahamyan. The Prosecutor General's Office, in particular, demands that the protocols on the tender and sale and purchase between the former village headman and members of the Abramyan family in 2003-2004 be declared invalid. We are talking about plots of land with an area of 8.9 hectares, 7.2 hectares and 4000 sq. m.
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