Charges Filed Against Arsen Babayan, Ara Babloyan Involved as Suspect

Based on sufficient evidence collected during the criminal investigation conducted by the Special Investigation Service of Armenia, Arsen Babayan has been charged under Article 38, Part 1 of Article 300 and Article 314, Part 1 of the Criminal Code of Armenia. He is accused of committing illegal acts while serving as Acting Deputy Chief of Staff of the National Assembly of Armenia in 2018, assisting a group of officials in seizing the powers of the Constitutional Court, as well as committing official forgery.

Within the same criminal case, former President of the National Assembly Ara Babloyan has been involved as a suspect on suspicion of usurping power.

According to the charges, on February 12, 2018, the President of the National Assembly proposed the candidacy of member of the Republican Party of Armenia, Hrayr Tovmasyan, for a vacant position on the Constitutional Court. On March 2, 2018, the National Assembly elected him as a member of the Constitutional Court.

As of March 1, 2018, when there were approximately 40 days left before the provisions of Chapter 7 of the Constitution, which was amended on December 6, 2015, would come into effect (the newly elected President was to assume office on April 9, 2018), a group of officials circumvented the constitutional provisions regarding the election of the President of the Constitutional Court for a six-year term and ensured that their associate could serve in that position until reaching the age of 70. This was done by illegally appointing Hrayr Tovmasyan as President of the Constitutional Court on March 21, 2018, prior to the aforementioned limitation taking effect.

In particular, former President of the Constitutional Court, Gagik Harutyunyan, whose term (reaching 70 years of age) was to expire on March 23, 2018, signed a resignation letter addressed to Ara Babloyan, which was dated March 1, 2018. This letter was issued from the General Division of the Constitutional Court and handed over to Arsen Babayan, Acting Deputy Chief of Staff of the National Assembly, through the Chief of Staff on March 5, 2018. However, Ara Babloyan, not having officially received Gagik Harutyunyan's resignation letter, illegally signed it on March 2, 2018, and made a public announcement regarding the submission of the resignation letter by Gagik Harutyunyan. Otherwise, the President of the National Assembly would not have been able to announce the resignation of the President of the Constitutional Court before the next regular session of the National Assembly on March 20, 2018. After that, under the conditions of compliance with the legally stipulated three-day deadline, it would have become impossible to appoint Hrayr Tovmasyan as President of the Constitutional Court before the entry into force date of the Constitution due to the amendments made in 2015, which was April 9, 2018, as no regular session of the National Assembly had been planned before that.

Arsen Babayan, with the intent to assist a group in usurping the powers of the Constitutional Court in violation of Article 97, Part 6 of the Law of the Republic of Armenia on the Regulations of the National Assembly adopted on February 20, 2002, created conditions by forging information on the stamp of the resignation letter and registering its entry in the Malberry electronic official system on March 5, 2018, indicating the entry date as March 2, 2018. In this way, Arsen Babayan created false grounds for the publication of Ara Babloyan’s announcement regarding the submission of Gagik Harutyunyan’s resignation letter, which in turn served as a basis for terminating his powers and subsequently for the nomination and appointment of Hrayr Tovmasyan to that vacant position.

A petition has been submitted by the investigator of the Special Investigation Service to the Court of General Jurisdiction of Yerevan to select arrest as a measure of restraint against A. Babayan. The pre-trial investigation is ongoing.

Note: A person suspected or charged with a crime is considered innocent until proven guilty in accordance with the procedures established by the Criminal Procedure Code of Armenia, as determined by a legally binding court decision.