Director of 'Armenian Youth Foundation' Charged with Large-Scale Money Laundering

The investigation into the case of the executive director of the 'Armenian Youth Foundation' regarding large-scale money laundering and misappropriation has been concluded by the Yerevan investigative office of the Armenian Investigative Committee.

The Investigative Committee informs NEWS.am that an application was previously received on May 25, 2018, from Karen Avagyan, a member of the board of trustees of the 'Armenian Youth Foundation' and a former member of parliament, reporting that on April 6, the executive director of the foundation signed a loan agreement worth 326,000,000 AMD on behalf of the foundation.

Based on the application, a criminal case was initiated according to part 1 of point 3 of Article 179 of the RA Criminal Code.

During the investigation, extensive investigative actions revealed the mechanisms of misappropriations and money laundering.

According to the data obtained during the pre-trial proceedings, it has been established that the executive director, who has held this position since 2010 and has the authority to manage the property and financial resources of the foundation under its charter, systematically embezzled a substantial amount of 325,600,000 AMD from the foundation's bank accounts in a series of cash withdrawals from April 29, 2013, to May 22, 2018.

Investigators also obtained information that in order to conceal the illegal origin of the misappropriated funds, the director laundered a significant amount of 226,464,209 AMD using various elaborate criminal mechanisms, transferring, concealing, and splitting the funds from account to account.

Specifically, from May 14, 2013, to March 15, 2018, the director transferred the noted amount in 251 transactions to bank accounts belonging to a private company registered in his mother's name. Subsequently, from May 15, 2013, to December 29, 2016, a total of 539,332 USD was moved from that private company's accounts to accounts of a firm operating in the United Kingdom in 116 transactions, after which this firm transferred 490,583 USD to the director's wife's account in Armenia over 108 transactions within the same timeframe. Furthermore, during this period, 477,485 USD was also transferred to the director's own account, which he used for personal needs through cash withdrawal and bank transfers.

Based on the gathered sufficient evidence, the executive director of the 'Armenian Youth Foundation' has been charged under part 1 of point 3 of Article 179 and part 1 of Article 190 of the RA Criminal Code. He has been remanded in custody as a preventive measure. A decision has been made to impose a seizure on the property owned by him.

The completion of the preliminary investigation has been announced, and the criminal case has been forwarded to court with an accusatory conclusion.