On 22 May, the hearing on the case of former Chief of Police Vladimir Gasparyan was continued in the Anti-Corruption Court. Judge Suren Khachatryan presided over the court hearing.
The indictment, stated that Gasparyan, knowing that Susanna Sardaryan (Gasparyan), who is in a de facto marital relationship with him, did not show at workplace at the Military Police of the Ministry of Defense and never performed the official duties arising from the position, and she was paid the salary. The state suffered a particularly large loss of 17 million 275 thousand 721 drams.
According to Iravaban.net witnesses Arshavir Mkhitaryan and Levon Sukiasyan were duly notified and appeared at the court session.
Levon Sukiasyan, who did not know any of the trial participants, was questioned the first. He was interrogated in the pre-trial body regarding the issue of buying a car. According to the witness, when he turned 18, his parents decided to present him a car, they saw the car on the Internet, went, there, saw the car and bought it. He stated that the price of the car was about 100 thousand USD.
They did not know anyone when making the deal, then they learned that it was Vladimir Gasparyan’s car. The car was bought in 2014.
Prosecutor Armen Muradyan asked with whom the contacts regarding the purchase and sale of the car took place, the witness said that he did not remember, the papers were handed over, made the transaction and handed over. Regarding the registration numbers of the car, he also said that he did not remember the exact numbers.
– Do you know Arshak Hakobyan?
– Not personally, but I heard.
– Have you had any relation with purchase and sell of the car?
– No, I haven’t seen it.
– You say that you paid money for the car, while according to the data obtained in the proceedings it was a gift, now do you actually remember whether you paid money or not?
– We paid, I do not know what was written there, and a stranger will not give a gift.
– The documents indicate that it was a gift, that is, you paid money in the amount of about 100 thousand USD.
– Yes.
When asked if he remembers whether the money was paid in cash or non-cash, the witness stated that he did not remember, and also stated that he did not remember who was involved in the sale of the car at that time. “Neither Gasparyan Vova was there, nor Arshak Hakobyan.”
The judge asked whether he met the person at whom he had seen the car in the registration examination department or not, the witness said that he might have seen the latter for a moment, then the employees already completed transactions.
The questioning of witness Levon Sukiasyan ended. Arshavir Mkhitaryan was interrogated next.
He mentioned that he knows Vladimir Gasparyan, one of the trial participants, he worked under the latter’s leadership as a referent of the Chief of Police.
According to him, in the pre-investigative body they asked questions about Vladimir Gasparyan’s wife, whether she worked or not, they also asked whether it was possible for her to work in the police, not attend work, and receive a salary. He said that the police was not an institution where the registered employees can afford not to attend workplace and receive a salary. He said that he did not have any contact with Susanna Gasparyan in the scope of his work responsibilities.
– Will you tell me how many years you worked in the police and in what capacity?
– From 1 November, 2012, if I am not mistaken, I worked as a referent to the Chief of Police, after that I worked as an assistant to the Deputy Chief of Police. I retired, in 2018. I worked as the Head of the Gugark Division of the Lori Marz Department, then I was included in the personnel reserve, and recently I was appointed the Head of Chambarak Division and retired according to my report.
– What responsibilities were assigned to you as a referent of the Chief of Police?
– Reception of citizens on Wednesdays.
– And was that responsibility assigned to you in written form or verbally, who said that you should perform those functions?
– We performed the function with the assistant Hakobyan Meruzhan.
– How was your work schedule and where was your workplace?
– The work schedule was from 9:15 to 6 o’clock, but if necessary, we stayed until 7 or 8 o’clock. The place of work was in the police building on Nalbandian Street.
He worked on the 4th floor, and in addition to him, the police staff and Vladimir Gasparyan’s assistants and advisers were on that floor too. As a referent, he did not carry out his work in another place, there was no case when he was absent from work. “I do not know Vladimir Gasparyan’s wife, we met a lot of people in the building, they said hello, but now I do not know who exactly I saw, how I saw her, whose wife or whose sister she was.”
Vladimir Gasparyan’s defense attorney Alexander Kochubaev, also asked the witness questions, asking whether the office of the Chief of Police was visible to him or not, the witness said no, it was not visible. “The offices were distributed like this. we went up the stairs, there was the elevator, Misha Kirakosyan and Boryan Valodya sat on the left from the stairs, Manukyan Nune’s office was in front of it, next to it there was the place of the police officer whom visitors approached before the reception, secretariat was next to it, the office of the Head of staff was in front of it, and our office was on the left.”
When asked what was needed to get to the office of the Chief of Police, the witness said that after the registration, there was a common door, which was always closed, and the reception of the Chief of Police was on the right side when passing through the corridor. The questioning of the witness ended, after which Vladimir Gasparyan made a statement saying that, for example, Narek Malyan’s officewas in the Academy, but he was his adviser, Edik Barseghyan, who was his assistant, had the office at the “Road Police”, the institution had 1200 employees.
“Let me say something surprising, I do not remember this guy, I’m saying this honestly, but I guessed from his name and surname that he is the son-in-law of my deputy Gagik Hambardzumyan, he was at Meruzhan Hakobyan’s disposal, I haven’t seen him, Meruzhan was organizing that reception,” Gasparyan said.
The judge mentioned that summon for the purpose of questioning at today’s court session was sent to Nune Manukyan as well. The latter is in the USA. A “BMIS” (Border Management Information Systems) request was made, the summons was returned with an unsolicited note.
According to “BMIS” survey data, Manukyan left the territory of Armenia on 11 November, 2021. The court made a request to the Civil Status Acts Registration Agency to clarify the factual circumstances regarding Armen Gevorgyan’s death, and according to the answer, his death was registered on 5 December, 2019.
Prosecutor Armen Muradyan said, taking into account that no circumstances will change regarding Armen Gevorgyan, he proposed to publish Gevorgyan’s preliminary testimony. There was no objection to publication, the prosecutor published the interrogation that took place in 2019.
From September 2011 to September 2018, Gevorgyan held the position of the Head of the Police Culture Center. According to him, the center organized and properly implemented various events related to the cultural life of the police.
During the period of his work, Knarik Sasunyan, Areg Arustamyan, Suzi Movsisyan, secretary Agapi, steward Vahan also worked in the Police Culture Center, he did not remember other people.
Video clips dedicated to the police were filmed, the group practiced under the sponsorship of the police, it was not paid. The witness stated that he had known Vladimir Gasparyan for about 30 years, since he was the head of the “Arevik” children’s choir, he knew the latter’s daughter, Angelina Gasparyan, who attended that group. He was the producer of the group, Angelina Gasparyan sang at the events organized by the Culture Center as well.
He communicated with Vladimir Gasparyan’s wife Susanna Gasparyan, in connection with the shooting and recording of videos of her daughter’s songs. He also stated that during the period when he was the head of the center, Susanna Gasparyan did not work there, he did not have any information about her workplace.
The prosecutor asked to send a summons to the persons whose summonses were returned with the note “unsolicited” through the police, and requested to make a decision on the forced attendance of the others.
The court decided to send summons regarding the witnesses Knarik Sasunyan, Koryun Mkrtchyan and Vahan Najarian to the next court session through the relevant regional police units, and to notify Suzanna Movsisyan once again about the date and time of the court session.
The next court session will take place on 4 June.
Mariam Shahnazaryan
