Customs Service Officials Arrested

In the investigation of a criminal case initiated under Article 205, Part 1, Article 308, Part 1, Article 311, Part 3, Clause 2, and Article 312, Part 1 of the RA Criminal Code at the Investigation Department of the RA State Revenue Committee (SRC), it has been revealed that a number of taxpayers conducting business activities in the Republic of Armenia, with the intent to maliciously evade large amounts of tax by concealing their shadow turnover, have utilized the possibility of carrying allowable accompanying cargo up to 25 kg for citizens arriving from a third country.

In exchange for material gain, these individuals have gathered groups consisting of RA citizens, promising and paying each citizen around 10,000 AMD as a fee. They have allegedly loaded large commercial consignments of goods, ordered and received from the Republic of Turkey for business purposes, into tourist transport vehicles in a transit country – Georgia – and attached the very citizens to the vehicle.

Subsequently, in this manner, the goods were transported to Armenia through the Gogavan-Privilnoye customs checkpoint of the SRC Eastern Customs Department, declared at the customs checkpoint as personal accompanying cargo of these citizens, and delivered to the ordering subjects. This information was provided by the Public Relations Department of the SRC.

During the pre-trial investigation of the criminal case, it was also established that a group of officials from the Gogavan-Privilnoye customs checkpoint of the SRC Eastern Customs Department have misused their office position for selfish purposes contrary to the interests of the customs service. Specifically, they have failed to perform their duties in carrying out proper customs control over imported goods as stipulated by law, including detecting, recording, and excluding violations.

In this context, the goods imported from Turkey and intended for sale were not cleared through customs according to the established legal procedure with the consent of the officials, and their entry was undocumented. As a result, the actions of the officials at the Gogavan-Privilnoye customs checkpoint have discredited the State Revenue Committee of the RA and caused significant harm to the legitimate interests of the state.

The pre-trial investigation has also revealed that since July 2019, a group of officials from the Gogavan-Privilnoye customs checkpoint of the SRC Eastern Customs Department, with the aim of carrying out the same criminal activities, had reached a preliminary agreement with several citizens. Particularly, they have made evident illegal actions within the scope of their authority related to customs procedures for goods imported into Armenia on behalf of these citizens, and have also displayed inactivity regarding the customs control functions entrusted to them. In exchange for all this, they have periodically received bribes of various amounts from citizens.

As part of the investigative instructions given in the mentioned criminal case, extensive operational and investigative measures have been undertaken by the officers of the Anti-Corruption and Economic Crimes Response Department of the Main Department for the Fight Against Organized Crime of the RA Police in conjunction with investigators from the criminal case in the SRC investigative department and the operatives of the SRC's Operational Investigation Department. As a result, six customs officials and two citizens suspected of committing the aforementioned criminal acts have been identified and arrested.

Searches have been conducted at the Gogavan-Privilnoye customs checkpoint, in the residences of the arrested, as well as in their vehicles, resulting in the discovery and seizure of items of significant evidentiary value for the criminal case, as well as the passports of citizens and various official documents.

The State Revenue Committee emphasizes the importance of actions taken to expose corrupt employees, while urging citizens to refrain from illegally importing goods into the territory of the RA, including through participation in groups formed by individuals engaged in criminal activities, without proper documentation procedures as established by law.