Traffic Police Fined US Citizen 30,000 Drams Without Specifying Reason

A US citizen, Benjamin Gill, reported to NEWS.am that on June 24, he was fined 30,000 drams by traffic police in Gyumri without being given a specific reason.

According to him, he was riding his moped through the central part of Gyumri around noon when the traffic police stopped him.

"I was riding in a separate lane when they stopped me as I was turning left. They told me that I had cut off a cargo truck, but they did not explain what specific violation I had committed. They demanded that I pay $200 for the infringement, and the situation was such that they had taken my driver's license. I understood that if I did not pay, they would either take my license away or arrest me. They were insisting on $200, implying that if I did not pay, I would be detained. In the end, I managed to negotiate and paid the officer 30,000 drams, for which I did not receive a receipt," he recounted, adding that after that, he was able to bargain and pay the officer in cash.

The citizen stated that the moped is registered in Georgia, from where he had arrived in Armenia the day before the incident. He also holds an international driver's license. He has filed a report regarding the incident with the Police.