Charges Filed Against Vladimir Gasparyan

The Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia has revealed several circumstances surrounding the obstruction of a journalist's professional legal activities by the former Chief of Police, Vladimir Gasparyan, as a result of investigative and procedural actions conducted within a criminal case.

According to the data obtained during the investigation, on August 8, 2020, around 16:20, Vladimir Gasparyan noticed that the area of his family's house in the village of Drax Tik, located in the Gegharkunik Province, was being filmed by a drone. In an attempt to identify the operators of the drone, he drove a quadricycle in the direction of the drone's flight path. Noticing that the recordings were being made by the journalist Robert Zargaryan from “Freedom”, Gasparyan issued threats of violence endangering their lives and health.

Being informed that they were conducting their professional activities and preparing a report concerning illegal constructions in the Sevan Lake basin, he demanded that they stop filming. Continuing to hurl insults, he exerted psychological pressure on the journalists, forcing them to delete the footage and refrain from distributing it. After ensuring the video had been deleted, he left the scene.

Based on the sufficient combination of evidence obtained, former Chief of Police Vladimir Gasparyan has been charged under part 1 of Article 164 of the RA Criminal Code for obstructing professional legal activities. As a precautionary measure, a signature not to leave has been chosen for him.