Former Police Official Charged with Misappropriation of 18 Million Dram

The Special Investigative Service of Armenia has charged S. Barsgelyan under the first part of Article 179, part 3 of the Armenian Criminal Code based on sufficient evidence obtained during the preliminary investigation of a criminal case. He is accused of misappropriating property valued at 18,384,000 Armenian drams while serving as the head of the automotive department of the Economic Division of the Armenian Police from 2017 to 2018.

According to the charges, during the specified period, a portion of the vehicles deemed unsuitable for further operation, which were on the balance sheet of the Economic Division of the Armenian Police and assigned to various police units, was moved to the automotive department’s territory. Before being submitted for valuation to the State Property Management Department of Armenia, these vehicles were handed over to employees of the automotive department. Notably, in 2017, several Toyota Corolla vehicles recognized as unsuitable by the Road Police service were also transferred to the automotive department.

During this time, S. Barsgelyan, without necessity and without following established procedures for valuation and documentation, used his official position to order the disassembly of parts and assemblies worth approximately 2.744 million drams from the mentioned Toyota Corolla vehicles through employees under his command.

Furthermore, during 2017-2018, a total of seven Ural IMZ-8 motorcycles belonging to the Armenian Police units in Yeghignadzor, Tashir, Sisian, and Gumri were also handed to the automotive department for the same purpose. These motorcycles were temporarily stored in the automotive department's territory before being submitted to the State Property Inventory and Valuation Agency for valuation. At this time, Barsgelyan, again without necessity or adherence to established procedures, ordered through his subordinates the disassembly of all motorcycles and the extraction of essential spare parts. Subsequently, the remaining motorcycles were turned in for valuation, leading to a significantly lesser market valuation of a total of 560,000 drams for seven motorcycles originally valued at around 16,200,000 drams.

After the valuation, S. Barsgelyan directed two employees from his unit to participate in an auction, purchasing the seven motorcycles at the assessed values. The acquired motorcycles were subsequently transferred to the automotive department of the Economic Division of the Armenian Police, where, as per Barsgelyan's orders, they were reassembled with previously disassembled parts and sold to various individuals.

S. Barsgelyan was arrested by the investigator of the Special Investigative Service on May 12, 2020. On May 13, 2020, a request was submitted to the Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction to select detention as a measure of constraint against S. Barsgelyan. The preliminary investigation is ongoing.