Former Deputy and Former Regional Governor's Names Circulated: NSS New Disclosure

The National Security Service of the Republic of Armenia has gained sufficient factual data regarding alleged abuses committed by the former governor of Aragatsotn, his brother—a former member of the National Assembly from the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), and the former head of the Kakavadzor community. The disclosures suggest that these individuals carried out particularly large-scale theft of state funds through collusion and deception.

Specifically, S.S. was appointed as the governor of Aragatsotn in accordance with the presidential decree NХ-728 of May 6, 1997, and the government decision N573-A of May 29, 2009. As the representative of the executive authority, he was authorized to ensure compliance with the laws of the Republic of Armenia, presidential decrees, governmental and prime ministerial decisions, as well as other normative legal acts. He also had the responsibility to oversee land use and protection, prevent, suspend, and eliminate illegal land use within the region.

Ignoring the requirements of the government decision N968-A of August 6, 2009, which mandated the relevant governors and community leaders to suspend construction within protective zones and expropriation strips of inter-state highways in the context of the construction of the North-South corridor, S.S. allegedly colluded with S.M., the mayor of Kakavadzor, and his brother N.S. to artificially inflate the cadastral value of the land for the purpose of selling it to the state at a significantly higher price.

The fraudulent scheme involved changing the designated purpose of the land purchased in 2005 and later selling it to the public organization responsible for implementing the North-South Road Corridor Investment Program at an exorbitant price. As part of this criminal endeavor, from August 6, 2009, S.S. allegedly allowed N.S. to carry out illegal construction on the agricultural land, which included building unauthorized structures without following the mandated legal procedures.

Following these actions, S.S. purportedly pressured the community leader to abuse his official duties, including violating the requirements of government decision N912-N of May 18, 2006, and irregularly classifying the unauthorized constructions. Eventually, S.S. included the land belonging to N.S. within the territories recognized for public benefit under government decision N931-N of May 27, 2010, creating the opportunity for a fraudulent sale to occur.

On December 3, 2013, N.S. signed an agreement for the expropriation of the land for public needs at a price of 139,923,733 AMD, claiming it was purchased for just 35,200 AMD—a clear indication of large-scale fraud amounting to 139,888,533 AMD against the state's interests.

The actions of the officials and community representatives have not only disrupted the normal functioning of state and local self-government bodies but also violated the requirements set forth by the government, resulting in significant asset damage to the state due to the fraudulent exaggeration of land value. Charges have been brought against S.S. and N.S. under relevant articles of the Armenian Criminal Code, with motions filed for their detention as a preventive measure.

Additionally, within the same investigation, the mayor of Kakavadzor has been questioned for his suspected involvement in official abuse and facilitating large-scale fraud, where he has provided confessional testimonies. Following immediate investigative actions, numerous certificates for property rights registration were seized during a search of N.S.'s residence. Efforts are underway to clarify the full scope of individuals involved in the criminal scheme, individualize their actions, and fully restore the damages caused to the state.