Whom Did the Head of Geghamasar Community Pay Money to Instead of ‘Thieves’?

The newspaper 'Jraghourt' reports: In an interview with Armlur.am, Nikolay Avetyan, the son of the aunt of Hakob Avetyan, the head of the consolidated Geghamasar community, presented details regarding why Hakob Avetyan was arrested and whom the community leader allegedly paid money to instead of 'thieves'.

As is known, on May 21 of this year, a person of high rank in the criminal hierarchy was taken into custody by the investigative department of the NSS on charges of creating and leading a criminal group. Later, 'thief in law' Arsen Yerevantsi, whose real name is Arsen Mkrtchyan, was arrested.

It should be noted that Arsen Yerevantsi does not accept the charges brought against him. Furthermore, we reported that among those arrested was Hakob Avetyan, the head of the Geghamasar community in Gegharkunik Province. According to our sources, Hakob Avetyan has had financial issues with specific individuals.

According to rumors circulating in the region, Hakob Avetyan owes money to various people who have been unable to regain their funds. They have resorted to calling on criminals to recover the money owed to them.

It was at this point that the matter reached a critical point. Arsen Yerevantsi has reportedly demanded payment from Avetyan either directly or indirectly for the money owed to these individuals. All conversations related to this demand were wiretapped by the National Security Service. This is why the NSS arrested Hakob Avetyan right from the municipal building.

However, in a conversation with us, Nikolay Avetyan clarified what had happened in the criminal case. According to him, Hakob Avetyan did not have any personal connections with 'thieves in law.' 'Hakob's debtor approached him, asking for help to pay off his debt. Hakob went and helped him settle that debt. But why is Hakob Avetyan being accused?' he stated.

According to the criminal case, there were individuals who were creditors of Avetyan whom he did not recognize. In other words, this creditor called on certain individuals to come and collect the money owed to him from Hakob Avetyan. Avetyan merely returned the money he had borrowed from his debtor. This whole process unfolded in that manner; Hakob Avetyan was only helping his debtor.

Now the case has reached this point: Hakob is being accused because the money was demanded by criminals, which implies that he had dealings with individuals from criminal culture. I want everyone to know that Hakob merely returned his debtor's money.

According to the judge who is a relative of the Geghamasar community leader, upon hearing this case, he expressed astonishment, noting that if a person owes money to a 'thief in law' and returns that money, should they be taken into custody? Now, if I owe someone money and I go and pay my debt, and it turns out that that person is a criminal or part of a criminal network, should I be taken into custody for returning my debt? It presents a nonsensical situation that they can't seem to navigate out of,' he said.

For more details, see today's edition of the newspaper.