A Shahumyan Resident Demands Debt from Fellow Villager, Strikes Him with a Bottle After Dispute

The investigation of a criminal case regarding the attempted murder, attempted kidnapping, and hooliganism committed by a 35-year-old resident of Shahumyan village in the Lori region, along with his friends, has been completed at the Lori Regional Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee of Armenia.

As previously reported, on February 9, 2021, around 7:00 PM, the 35-year-old man, while driving his Mitsubishi Montero with friends, went to the yard of a fellow villager demanding the money owed by the latter's brother. Dissatisfied with the response, the man began to shout insults and deliberately struck the fellow villager on the head with a beer bottle.

After getting out of the car and being carried away by the mania of showcasing his superiority, he, along with his friends, continued to physically assault the fellow villager and his family members while hurling numerous insults, thus grossly violating public order for a prolonged period.

During this time, the resident of Shahumyan, in a pre-arranged agreement with his friends, ordered to open the trunk of the car with the intent to kidnap the debtor's brother. He applied life-threatening violence by grabbing the man by the head and neck, while his friends held various parts of his body and attempted to force him into the trunk against his will. However, due to the intervention of the male victim's family members, the crime was not completed, and they fled the scene in their car.

Shortly thereafter, at around 7:10 PM, with the deliberate intent to unlawfully take the life of two or more persons, the 35-year-old man drove his car at high speed toward the fellow villager, his uncle, and his other brother, running over them. The impact caused the fellow villager and his uncle to fall to the ground.

The 35-year-old man continued his intention to kill the debtor's brother and, while driving forward, deliberately drove over his right foot with the left wheel, parking the vehicle in such a way that it prevented him from escaping under the car and attempting to fulfill his criminal intentions.

After getting out of the car, the 35-year-old man and his friends continued their hooligan actions, shouting insults. However, upon hearing that family members of the male victim had called the police, they fled the scene in the aforementioned vehicle.

Based on the gathered sufficient evidence, the 35-year-old man has been charged under the first point of the second part of Article 34-104, the first and second points of the second part of Article 34-131, and the fourth part of Article 258 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia. His four friends have been charged under the first and second points of the second part of Article 34-131 and the first point of the third part of Article 258 of the Criminal Code. As a preventive measure, the 35-year-old man and one of his friends have been remanded in custody, while the others have been released on bail. The investigation has been completed, and the criminal case has been forwarded to court with an indictment.