Prison Staff Allowed Inmate to Smuggle Drugs; Incident Uncovered

The operational units of the penitentiary service of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia have uncovered that on November 11, at around 18:45, inmate A. S. was subjected to a personal search upon his arrival at the "Armavir" penitentiary from the Vagharchapat Hospital. During the search, two packages were found containing a greenish substance resembling marijuana, weighing 24 grams, and 2 mobile phones with SIM cards.

According to information from the public relations department of the penitentiary service, it has been revealed that between November 10 and 11, inmate A. S. managed to connect with K. V., a resident of Vagharchapat, using the mobile phones provided to him by the penitentiary staff members S. M., G. G., and S. G., who abused their official powers. They coordinated the acquisition of the drugs.

Subsequently, marijuana and other prohibited items were transferred to the Vagharchapat Hospital, where they were delivered to inmate A. S. in the hospital cafeteria with the knowledge and permission of the aforementioned penitentiary officers. The penitentiary staff consumed part of the brought drugs by smoking it with inmate A. S. while leaving the rest with him to be taken back to the prison along with the mobile phones.

A criminal case has been initiated under Articles 266, Part 2, Point 3; 268, Part 1; and 308, Part 1 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia. The case has been referred to the Special Investigation Service of Armenia for further investigation. The suspect or accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty in accordance with the procedure established by the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Armenia through a legally binding court judgment.