Video: NSS Reveals Another Case of Bribery by Military Registration Official

The National Security Service (NSS) has uncovered another case of bribery by an official of a military registration office, adhering to its policy of uprooting various manifestations of corruption. This was achieved through operational-investigative measures and investigative actions carried out within the framework of its legally assigned functions.

According to the factual data obtained, the head of the conscription department of a military registration office in one of the provinces of Armenia, as a public servant and exercising the functions of a representative of authority, reached a preliminary agreement in 2019 with a former employee of the same military registration office to assist in granting deferments from mandatory military service or exemptions from service, in exchange for bribes, through certain officials with connections to him.

Using his official position, the head of the conscription department, in agreement with the military table inspector, facilitated the actions in favor of 4 conscripts during the winter conscription of 2019, through competent officials. As a result, two of the conscripts received the right to deferment, while two others were deemed unfit for mandatory service and registered in the reserves. For this, the department head demanded and received a particularly large bribe from the relatives of these conscripts, totaling around 6.5 million AMD, equivalent to $13,700.

Following the acquisition of sufficient factual evidence, those suspected of committing the crime were taken into custody, while the bribers confessed to the circumstances of the crime due to the presence of irrefutable evidence.

A criminal case has been initiated in the investigative department of the NSS on the basis of the relevant articles of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia regarding the cases of alleged criminal activity, and both the official who received the bribe and his accomplice have been arrested. The investigation is ongoing, and appropriate measures are being taken to uncover other possible cases of bribery and hold accountable other individuals involved in the corruption chain.