Directors and Community Leaders: 64 Individuals Under Criminal Prosecution in Shirak Province

According to the Shirak Province Prosecutor's Office, 149 criminal cases regarding apparent corruption were initiated during 2019 under the procedural supervision or management of the prosecutors. This figure represents an increase of 42 cases or approximately 40% compared to the same period in the previous year. Among these, 91 criminal cases were initiated by the prosecutors of the Shirak Province.

The noted corruption cases include 54 incidents recorded in education, 21 in local self-governance, 12 in urban planning, 3 in cadastre, 1 concerning military conscription, 6 in agriculture, 9 in banking and credit organizations, 14 in healthcare, 19 in the public service of social security, and 10 cases involve individuals working in law enforcement institutions committing apparent crimes.

The apparent corrupt criminal acts primarily involved the appropriation or misappropriation of various amounts using official positions, causing significant damage through fraud or abuse of trust, misuse of official powers, neglect, bribery, mediation in bribery, committing official forgeries, abuse of authority by employees of trade or other organizations, falsification of documents, evading obligatory military service by deceit, and various combinations thereof.

Throughout 2019, prosecutions were initiated against 64 individuals, including 12 community leaders, 1 deputy rector of a university, 11 school directors, 3 deputy directors, 4 teachers, 2 employees of the Shirak Provincial Governor's Office, 3 employees of the Gyumri City Hall, 11 employees from social security sectors, 5 directors of vocational schools and sports schools, and 12 citizens assisting officials in committing crimes. Notably, only 6 of those individuals were detained as a preventive measure.

During this time, 7 criminal cases against 14 individuals were sent to court with a prosecutorial conclusion, and 2 criminal cases were concluded at court, resulting in guilty verdicts for 3 individuals.

The estimated damage caused to the state as a result of the publicly recorded corrupt nature of the crimes stood at AMD 294,744,633, of which AMD 197,742,526 was restored with the active involvement of Shirak Province Prosecutor's Office employees, while efforts to recover the remaining amount have been initiated through the appropriate legal instruments. The amount of damage caused to the state identified in criminal cases is nearly 6 times higher than that of the same period in 2018 (AMD 48,726,840).

To ensure the proper collection of damages, property belonging to the accused has been subjected to seizure. The amount restored during 2019 exceeded 4.3 times the results of 2018 (AMD 45,958,679). Furthermore, in 7 criminal cases concluded in court, prosecutors' claims to restore damages caused to the state were fully satisfied, totaling around AMD 14 million, and enforcement orders have been sent to the Ministry of Justice's State Revenue Committee to commence recovery proceedings.

In 2019, within the framework of materials prepared and criminal cases initiated regarding corruption crimes, based on Article 30 of the RA Law on the Prosecutor's Office, 47 petitions were presented to the Minister of Education, Science, Sports, and Youth Issues, the Shirak Province Governor, and the Gyumri Mayor, aiming to address causes and contributing conditions for crimes, as well as to restore the identified violations of state interests. Disciplinary actions have already been applied as a result of 41 of these petitions, leading to the dismissal of one school director, one employee of Haypost CJSC, and one director of a public organization operating under the Ministry of Environment.

The Shirak Province Prosecutor's Office has also engaged in active and comprehensive work in the sphere of protecting state interests. Within this mandate, 467 studies have been conducted, covering obligations related to investments made by mineral extraction entities in communities, compliance with environmental protection contributions, administrative oversight and audit in the social and educational fields, unauthorized constructions in the community, and the Employment State Agency of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs among other areas. As a result of these studies, warnings were issued by the Prosecutor's Office to 91 economic entities, leading to the restoration of over AMD 19 million to the state.