The Activities of Most Officials of the State Food Safety Inspectorate in Shirak Region, Including the Head, Temporarily Suspended in Connection with Another Criminal Case

Gor Abrahamyan, an advisor to the Chief Prosecutor, has made a post on his Facebook page, noting that the application of prosecutorial measures aimed at eliminating the causes and conditions that lead to crimes, and cooperation with competent authorities within that framework, is yielding results.

“Those following the official announcements regarding the activities of the prosecutor's office may recall that the criminal case instigated due to the mass poisoning incident at the ‘Dvin’ restaurant complex in Gyumri, involving three accused individuals, was sent to the first instance court of general jurisdiction in Shirak region for substantive consideration.

During the investigation of this case, a number of violations were recorded as a result of the appointed and conducted expert assessments, which led Shirak Regional Prosecutor Karen Gabrielyan to address a petition to Georgi Avetisyan, the head of the State Food Safety Inspectorate of Armenia. The petition proposed urgent measures to be taken to initiate and implement necessary changes in the legal regulations concerning the sector, in order to prevent similar incidents and to provide a full and clear legal assessment of the actions of the guilty parties, as well as to discuss the appropriateness of applying disciplinary actions against staff members who may have committed violations when there are sufficient grounds.

According to a letter received from the State Food Safety Inspectorate of Armenia, the issues raised in the petition have become the subject for discussion. Notably, it has been mentioned that the activities of most officials of the Shirak regional center of the inspectorate, including the head, have been temporarily suspended in connection with another criminal case. As for the gaps in the legal regulations mentioned in the petition, according to the received letter, a legislative package has been developed by the inspectorate aimed at addressing these issues and submitted to the competent authority responsible for developing sector policies, which is directed at clarifying and simplifying the scope of rights and obligations assigned to the inspectorate and eliminating terms and regulations that may lead to dual interpretations.