Investigation into Wiretapping of Arthur Vanetsyan and Sasun Khachatryan Closed Due to Lack of Criminal Composition

The Investigative Committee of Armenia has provided details regarding the wiretapping of telephone conversations between Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and former Director of the National Security Service Arthur Vanetsyan, as well as between the head of the Special Investigative Service Sasun Khachatryan and Arthur Vanetsyan, who was serving as the Director of the NSS at the time of the conversations.

According to the response from the Investigative Committee, Prime Minister Pashinyan is considered a witness in one of the criminal cases, while he is recognized as a victim in another. Here is an update on the status of these cases:

The preliminary investigation into the illegal recording and dissemination of phone conversations involving Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, former NSS Director Arthur Vanetsyan, and head of the SIS Sasun Khachatryan continues. All three individuals have been recognized as victims in this case and have been interrogated.

As for the criminal case initiated based on the publications that emerged on September 11, 2018, under the title "The Conversation of the NSS Director and the Head of the SIS has Appeared on the Internet," which pointed to data indicating an abuse of official powers, the proceedings for this case were terminated on February 4, 2020, due to a lack of criminal composition based on Article 35, Clause 1, Sub-clause 2 of the Armenian Criminal Procedure Code.