On the initiative of the Armenian Lawyers’ Association, today, on 11 February, focus group discussions were held on the third event of the Action Plan of the Anti-Corruption Strategy of the Republic of Armenia for 2019-2022: the investigation of corruption-related cases.

The first of the discussions was held with the participation of representatives of the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of High-Tech Industry, the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Investigative Committee, the Academy of Justice, the E-Government Infrastructure Implementation Agency (EKENG), and the Armenian Lawyers’ Association.

The second discussion was held with CSOs and representatives of the advocacy and legal community.

It should be noted that according to the strategy, the investigation of corruption-related cases measure envisages several actions (actions 32-41), which are:

32․ Clarification of the scope of corruption crimes under the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia.

33․ Studying the compliance of the elements of corruption-related crimes enshrined by the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia with international standards, submitting where necessary, recommendations on bringing the corruption-related crimes in line with international standards.

34. Developing a methodology for investigation of individual corruption-related crimes, including illicit enrichment, conducting training of criminal prosecution bodies based on the methodology developed.

35. Complementing the statistics on corruption-related crimes.

36. Ensuring the access to criminal prosecution bodies to the electronic databases of state bodies through electronic inquiry.

37. Establishing a centralized register of bank accounts,

38. Strengthening international cooperation in the investigating and disclosing corruption-related crimes.

39․ Establishing mechanisms aimed at confiscation of property of illicit origin,

40․ Introduction of an institute to subject legal persons to criminal liability for corruption-related offences.

41. Creating pre-conditions for bringing the legal regulations prescribed by Article 30 of the Law “On Operational Intelligence Activity” in compliance the law enforcement practice.

It should be added that 4 discussions on the first measure of the Anti-Corruption Strategy – the development of the anti-corruption institutional system, and the actions included in it were held on 9 and 10 February.

A total of 12 similar discussions have already been held on the Judicial and Legal Reform Strategy.