Criminal Case Initiated Over Apparent Misuse at Goris Municipality

The Special Investigation Service of Armenia is conducting an investigation to clarify all circumstances surrounding the apparent misuse detected at the Goris municipality.

According to the Service, on March 23, 2021, the state supervision service conducted an examination at the Goris municipality to assess the credibility of the information regarding the allocation of state funds to the municipality from January 1, 2016, to April 30, 2021.

The results of the investigation have recorded various violations, including payments made based on contracts for construction works that were not actually carried out, inflated costs of construction operations, and non-targeted expenditures during construction. Additionally, broken and unsuitable-to-use reinforced concrete channels that emerged during construction have caused an estimated loss of 38,440,000 AMD to the state.

It was also revealed that, in violation of the government’s decision on the organization of procurement processes, changes were made to the work related to two contracts that exceeded the initial contract amounts by 35.2% and 26.1%, respectively.

Furthermore, it was noted that several vehicles were sold despite outstanding property tax obligations. The investigation results have been forwarded to the Armenian Investigation Committee, where responsible officials from the Goris municipality were invited to explain the violations but did not show up.

Considering the apparent basis and cause for initiating a criminal case, a criminal case has been opened in the Special Investigation Service under articles 178, 308, 314, and 325 of the Armenian Criminal Code. An inquiry is ongoing.