Customs and Tax Inspector Arrested for Allegedly Taking Bribes from Entrepreneurs

The National Police of Armenia reported that operational information was received at the Department for the Fight Against Corruption and Economic Crimes regarding two employees of the Tax Inspection of the State Revenue Committee (SRC) operating in the Erebuni area. These officials allegedly demanded and received bribes in various amounts from several entrepreneurs in Yerevan each month in exchange for not recording various violations.

On January 26, 2021, as a result of operational and investigative measures, one of the tax inspectors, A. P., was arrested immediately after receiving a previously requested sum of 40,000 AMD from the director of a food point located on David Bek Street in Yerevan. His colleague, tax inspector V. S., was also detained. During a personal search of A. P., the 40,000 AMD, which served as the bribe, was discovered and confiscated along with other amounts of money.

A criminal case was initiated on January 26, 2021, at the Central Criminal Police Department of the Armenian National Police under Article 311, Part 3, Clause 2, and Article 312, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of Armenia, and on the same day, the aforementioned inspectors were arrested.

Additionally, representatives of several entrepreneurs submitted reports to the police, stating that between 2020 and 2021, they gave various amounts of bribes at the request of the Erebuni tax inspectors to avoid fines for their violations, totaling approximately 1,390,000 AMD.

In connection with these facts, three criminal cases were initiated at the Main Department of Criminal Police of the Armenian National Police and were sent to the Special Investigative Service of Armenia for preliminary investigation, where they were consolidated into one proceeding.

Based on a sufficient combination of evidence obtained during the investigation at the Special Investigative Service, A. P. was charged under Article 311, Part 3, Clauses 2 and 3 of the Criminal Code for having demanded and received various amounts of bribes, including large sums, from several entrepreneurs in violation of his official duties concerning tax inspections and the detection of violations.

Simultaneously, a petition was submitted to the First Instance Court of Yerevan to apply the measure of pre-trial detention against A. P., which was granted by the court. A comprehensive, complete, and objective investigation of the circumstances of the case is being conducted under proper prosecutorial oversight to identify any other alleged incidents, ascertain whether the criminal acts were committed by a group, and ultimately provide a legal assessment to the inspectors’ actions.