Is There a Connection Between the News of Narek Sargsyan's Arrest and the Election Campaign? V. Osipyan

The publication of news regarding Narek Sargsyan's arrest coincided with the last day of the election campaign, but this was purely coincidental. Valery Osipyan, the Chief of Police of Yerevan, stated this in an interview with Azatutyun radio.

When asked whether the news of Narek Sargsyan's arrest was purposely released on the last day of the campaign, December 7, Osipyan replied:

“I assure you that it was just a coincidence. I even discussed with the head of our news department whether we should publish the news or not, but during that time, two or three days passed, and we didn’t rule out the possibility that the news could come from some source—either from our colleagues or from Narek Sargsyan’s relatives—and everyone would know. We are not constrained, as there is no arrangement or precondition.”

It is noteworthy that 37-year-old Narek Sargsyan was arrested last week in one of the residential buildings in Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic.

Armenian law enforcement previously charged Sargsyan last summer when illegal weapons and drugs were discovered in his apartment located in the center of Yerevan. Furthermore, this is not an exhaustive list of the crimes attributed to Sargsyan, as the Armenian police also noted that at the time of discovery, he presented a fake passport of a Guatemalan citizen with the personal details of Franklin Gonzalez.