Details on the Charges Against Judge Samvel Uzunyan in the October 27 Case

The advisor to the Prosecutor General of Armenia, Gor Abrahamyan, has made a post on Facebook. He stated, "In order to avoid various interpretations regarding the motions submitted to the Supreme Judicial Council of Armenia, I would like to inform you that the motions were submitted by the acting Prosecutor General and Deputy Prosecutor General of Armenia, Davit Melkonyan, to the Special Investigation Service under Article 178, Part 3, Clause 1 of the Criminal Code of Armenia, Article 34-312, Part 3, Clause 1, and Article 311, Part 4, Clause 2 of the NSS of Armenia, which relate to the criminal cases that have been merged into one proceeding, and for which the pre-trial investigation is currently underway by the SIS of Armenia.

Based on a sufficient combination of evidence obtained during the preliminary investigation, it has been established that S. U., a staff member of the judicial power body, used his official position to facilitate criminal prosecution against persons who allegedly committed a crime by requesting and receiving bribes amounting to particularly large sums: $13,000 in one case for issuing a judicial act in favor of a plaintiff in a civil lawsuit filed in October 2014, and the equivalent of $38,000 in Armenian drams in another case related to a criminal case initiated in 2007, which was later dismissed.

The materials obtained in the criminal case provide sufficient grounds to involve S. U. in this criminal case as a defendant and to charge him with committing criminal acts under Article 38-34-312, Part 3, Clause 1, in one episode, and under Article 311, Parts 4, Clauses 2 and 3 of the Criminal Code of Armenia in another episode.

The evidence obtained suggests that, while remaining free, he may evade the investigative body conducting the criminal proceedings, as well as obstruct the pre-trial proceedings or the court trial by exerting illegal influence on the participants of the criminal proceedings. Considering these circumstances, the acting Prosecutor General of Armenia has submitted motions to the Supreme Judicial Council to grant permission for criminal prosecution against the individual who was a former employee of the judicial power body and to detain him, which have been approved.

Note: It is reminded that a person suspected or accused of an alleged crime is considered innocent until proven guilty by a court decision that has entered into legal force in accordance with the procedure established by the Criminal Procedure Code of Armenia."