Former Head of Shirak Cadastre's Wife Rents Land for 2,000 Drams and Subleases It for Nearly Half a Million Drams

The former head of the Shirak regional division of the Cadastre Committee, Arayik Arakelyan, allegedly facilitated the leasing of land in rural Shirak communities at low costs during his tenure, which his family then subleased to other legal entities at significantly higher prices. Currently, two criminal cases are being investigated against Arakelyan's wife, H. Aleksanyan, according to a written response from the RA Prosecutor General's Office.

The Prosecutor General's Office elaborated that on May 7, 2020, a criminal case was initiated under Article 308, Part 2 of the RA Criminal Code at the Ashotik Division of the Shirak Regional Police. This case pertains to a leasing agreement signed on August 9, 2006, for 1.0 hectare of community-owned property with H. Aleksanyan for an annual fee of 2,040 AMD. Shortly after, on August 22, 2006, the lessee subleased 0.2 hectares of this land for 480,000 AMD per year to a telecommunications operator for the installation and operation of a communications station.

The Prosecutor's Office informed the media that the leasing agreement has since been terminated and a new contract has been signed with the company by the consolidated community of Sarapat.

Regarding the other case, the Prosecutor's Office announced that the Ashotik Division of the Shirak Regional Police opened a criminal case under Article 308, Part 1 of the RA Criminal Code concerning an incident where a former head of the Musayelian village on November 6, 2006, granted H. Aleksanyan the right to lease 2.75 hectares of land for a term of 25 years at an annual rate of 9,350 AMD. Ten days after signing the rental agreement with the village administration, H. Aleksanyan subleased 200 m² of the area for 120,000 AMD to another mobile operator. Notably, this subleasing agreement has not been terminated.

The Prosecutor’s Office states that necessary investigative and procedural actions are being conducted to ensure the comprehensive, multifaceted, and objective investigation of the mentioned criminal cases.