Court Acquits Mushegh Sagatelyan, Involved in March 1 Events

The first instance general jurisdiction court of Yerevan, presided by Judge Mesrop Makeyan, acquitted Mushegh Sagatelyan, the former head of the Penitentiary System, who participated in the events of March 1, 2008. He had previously been found guilty by a verdict on October 23, 2008, under Article 235, Part 4, and Articles 316, Parts 1 and 2 of the RA Criminal Code, resulting in a fine and a five-year prison sentence.

The court has now acquitted him based on the absence of criminal composition.

It is noteworthy that Sagatelyan was charged for participating in mass public events in Yerevan following the presidential elections of 2008. On the morning of March 1, he allegedly engaged in non-life-threatening violence against police officers at Liberty Square, later trying to evade law enforcement.

He was also charged with carrying a factory-manufactured knife, which is classified as a cold weapon.

It is important to mention that the Prosecutor General Artur Davtyan appealed to the Court of Cassation to overturn the conviction of Mushegh Sagatelyan and send the case back for new trial. The Court of Cassation fully granted the Prosecutor General's complaint (and partially the appeals of defenders S. Safaryan and V. Grigoryan), overturning the previous decisions and sending the case back to the first instance general jurisdiction court of Yerevan for retrial.

Mushegh Sagatelyan has been in a coma for a considerable time.