Russian Media: Former Official Boris Avagyan found dead in Armenian  Consulate General in St.  Petersburg

ArmInfo. Boris Avagyan, former Special Representative of the President of  Nagorno-Karabakh and former Deputy Director of the State Emergency  Service of the Artsakh Ministry of Internal Affairs, was found dead  in the Armenian Consulate General on Bolshoy Prospekt on Vasilievsky  Island.

According to Russian media, he had fled there on September 23 from  the Kronstadt District Court of St.  Petersburg, where he was  supposed to be held in custody in a case involving evasion of customs  duties totaling over 4.2 billion rubles. The case against Avagyan and  several others has been under trial since April 2024. A total of 21  people are involved in the case. It is also noted that on August 22  of this year, Avagyan signed a contract with the Ministry of Defense.  His case was put on hold, and Avagyan was released from custody.  However, the case was reopened after the termination of this contract  and Avagyan's refusal to leave for the Northern Military District.

According to 47News, a 43-year-old Armenian citizen named Avagyan  disappeared during a court hearing break. "He asked the guards for  permission to smoke and then disappeared. According to the portal,  Avagyan took refuge in the Armenian Consulate in St. Petersburg, but  the embassy did not confirm this.  The former official was detained  on September 17 in central St. Petersburg," the publication reported.

A video surfaced overnight in Armenian media showing Avagyan  at the  Armenian Consulate General in St. Petersburg and demanding his  deportation to Armenia. He claimed that he had been wanted by  Armenian law enforcement since 2022 for illegal border crossing and  money laundering. Avagyan reported that he voluntary went to the  consulate to surrender himself and arrange for his deportation to  Armenia, where he is a citizen. However, he was told by the Armenian  consulate that deportation was not possible and that he would be  handed over to Russian law enforcement.

At the time of publication, the Armenian Foreign Ministry was unable  to confirm the accuracy of the information regarding Avagyan's death.