Armen Charchyan's Health Condition is Poor, Lawyer Says

The former head of Izmirlian Medical Center and MP from the Armenia parliamentary faction, Armen Charchyan's health condition is poor, according to his lawyer, Erik Aleksanyan, speaking to Aysor.am.

“He has severe diabetes and receives 92 units of insulin daily, which, according to the government's decision, is incompatible with detention,” said the lawyer. “On August 24, Charchyan suffered an acute myocardial infarction, which has a tendency to recur.”

Erik Aleksanyan has requested an urgent court session to discuss the issue of releasing the professor on bail, but has not received any response from the court. “We are dealing with purely political persecution, therefore, the logic here is already evident,” he noted.

On September 1, Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II visited Armen Charchyan. The lawyer did not provide details of the meeting, only stating that they spoke privately and that he organized the meeting.

It is noteworthy that the Special Investigation Service had decided to involve Armen Charchyan as a suspect. The investigator made a decision to file a motion for Charchyan’s detention as a preventive measure.

Earlier, a recording had circulated on the internet in which Armen Charchyan called on the medical center's employees to participate mandatorily in elections. Armen Charchyan had been arrested and then released. The Mother See responded to the arrest of Armen Charchyan, urging law enforcement to immediately release Professor Charchyan.

The prosecutor presented a motion to the CEC regarding the agreement to deprive Armen Charchyan of his freedom. Judge Armine Meliksetyan approved the request of the Special Investigation Service to apply detention as a preventive measure against Professor Armen Charchyan. He was detained for one month. On July 21, the Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction, headed by Judge Vahe Misakyan, had decided to release Armen Charchyan.

However, on August 23, the Court of Appeal, headed by Judge Rubik Mkhitaryan, approved the prosecutor's appeal against the decision to release Charchyan on bail, overturning the first instance court’s decision and leaving unchanged the detention as a preventive measure against Charchyan in pre-trial proceedings.