Aghamal Harutyunyan, Convicted in the Murder Case of Poghos Poghosyan, to Be Summoned for Interrogation

Aghamal Harutyunyan, who was sentenced to a lenient punishment in the brutal murder case of Poghos Poghosyan, will be summoned for interrogation based on newly emerged circumstances surrounding the case. This was reported by Naira Harutyunyan, head of the Information and Public Relations Department of the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia, in response to a question from Armtimes.com, adding that Harutyunyan is currently in Armenia.

Earlier, Gohar Abrahamyan, an advisor to the Prosecutor General, mentioned in a conversation with HJ that the new evidence in the case, which has emerged 18 years after Poghosyan's murder, involves a request from representatives of Stephen John Newton, a British citizen and eyewitness to the murder. Attached to this request were translated documents as well as the criminal case regarding Poghosyan's murder, which was examined by the Court of General Jurisdiction of Yerevan's Kentron and Norq Marash administrative districts on the night of September 24 to 25, 2001 at the 'Paplavok' cafe.

Abrahamyan noted that the Prosecutor's Office has reviewed the documents provided by Newton, which ostensibly indicate that Poghosyan was not killed accidentally but rather intentionally and in a hooligan manner by Harutyunyan and other unidentified individuals involved in the case.

In response to our inquiry, Naira Harutyunyan stated that S.J. Newton has not yet been summoned for interrogation but will be invited shortly. “All necessary measures will be taken to carry out the required actions,” she said.

It is noteworthy that Aghamal Harutyunyan was a member of Robert Kocharyan's security detail. In 2002, he was found guilty under Article 103 of the former Criminal Code of Armenia (committing murder through negligent behavior). He was sentenced to 2 years of imprisonment, although the punishment was conditionally suspended with a probation period of 1 year. Meanwhile, Poghosyan's relatives insisted that he was deliberately killed by beating.

“Evidently, new circumstances have surfaced that may prove that Aghamal Harutyunyan committed a more serious crime—murder under aggravating circumstances—than the one for which he was convicted. Additionally, they apparently indicate the involvement of other individuals in the crime. As a result, based on these newly emerged circumstances regarding Poghosyan's death, a new proceeding was initiated at the Prosecutor's Office of Yerevan based on the features of the crime as outlined in part 2, point 10 of Article 104 of the RA Criminal Code. The case has been forwarded to the Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee of Armenia for examination,” Gohar Abrahamyan stated.