Witness testimony claims Zakhar Hovhannisyan attempted to strike Gegham Petrosyan with a metal rod, who then fired a shot

In the case of the March 1 events, there is a witness testifying against Gegham Petrosyan, who is accused of killing Zakhar Hovhannisyan. This witness has provided a sensational statement, as reported by Armtimes.com.

In court, Petrosyan's lawyer, Vaghik Gevorgyan, shared some details with reporters present. He stated that Gegham Petrosyan refutes the charges against him and has refused to testify.

When asked why he denied the allegations, the lawyer responded, "He hasn't given any testimony or expressed his opinion regarding any factual data because, in reality, such an incident did not occur," Gevorgyan said.

To our observation that Petrosyan had been questioned as a witness several times before, we inquired what new evidence had emerged leading to his arrest two days ago. Gevorgyan replied that a person has come forward who testified that allegedly the protester Zakhar Hovhannisyan attacked Gegham Petrosyan with a metal rod or reinforcement and attempted to hit him on the head. The lawyer elaborated that according to the witness's testimony, a situation was created where either Zakhar Hovhannisyan would strike Gegham Petrosyan or the latter would strike him. According to the same witness's testimony, Petrosyan fired a shot. "Either he would strike Gegham Petrosyan, and he would die, or Petrosyan would have shot," Gevorgyan added.

In response to our clarifying question about whether the investigator cites only this testimony in the motion, or if there are also results from expert examinations, Gevorgyan said that there is a forensic medical examination conclusion of Zakhar Hovhannisyan, but there is no conclusion from the forensic ballistic examination. He also stated that the weapon used in the crime has not been found, nor has the bullet been discovered. The lawyer noted that the bullet has been located, but no examination has been appointed afterward. "They need to find the weapon, conduct identification, and see if that weapon could have fired that bullet," he said.

To the remark concerning the criminal case stating that the cartridges have been swapped, we asked how identification would be conducted. Vaghik Gevorgyan replied that he is unaware whether those cartridges have been swapped or not. "In this specific case, the bullet has been found in Zakhar Hovhannisyan's body; it pertains to a 9mm caliber that is present today. The pistol will be found, an examination will be appointed, and it will be clarified whether it was fired from that gun or not," he stated.

When asked if Gegham Petrosyan has made any statements in court, the lawyer responded negatively. "He generally does not make any statements. We do not trust anyone, which is why we do not make statements," he said. To another question about whether Petrosyan testified against any individual involved in the March 1 case, Vaghik Gevorgyan mentioned that he has no knowledge of such material within the scope of these charges. When asked if Petrosyan acknowledges that an incident occurred between him and Zakhar Hovhannisyan, Gevorgyan stated that Petrosyan has not expressed a stance on this or any other circumstance. The lawyer added that Petrosyan has not confronted the individual who testified about the alleged incident between Hovhannisyan and Petrosyan. According to him, the prosecuting body attempted to conduct a confrontation, but they refused that investigative action, not even knowing whom they had to confront. "We generally refuse to participate in any confrontation or other investigative actions, exercising our rights," he said.

In response to our question, Vaghik Gevorgyan stated that his client Petrosyan possessed a 'Makarov' type pistol. When asked if the shot was fired from that weapon, the lawyer replied that it definitely was not fired from that gun, as Gegham Petrosyan did not commit such an act at all.

It is noteworthy that Gegham Petrosyan, brought to court, refused to answer reporters' questions, covering his face with a book.