Criminal Cases Initiated for Thefts from Parents of Missing or Captured Soldiers

Since the signing of the trilateral statement establishing a ceasefire in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict on November 10, 2020, numerous instances of fraud targeting the parents and relatives of soldiers who went missing, were killed, or were captured during the war have been reported. The Office of the Prosecutor General of Armenia has announced that individuals have established contacts with the parents and relatives of soldiers who are considered dead, missing, or captured in Azerbaijan, presenting themselves as high-ranking military personnel or having close connections with representatives of the National Security Service of Armenia or security services of other countries.

Exploiting the trust of the parents and relatives, these individuals assured them that they had reliable information regarding their son's survival or his exact location in a specific settlement in Azerbaijan or a specific correctional facility. They claimed to have the ability to mediate and leverage their personal connections in other countries to secure the medical treatment of their captives, as well as their release and transport to Armenia, for a considerable amount of money and bribes.

In certain cases, they managed to obtain significant sums of money under these pretenses, but the majority of them could not complete their criminal intent of theft due to operational-investigative measures, resulting in their arrest by Armenian law enforcement authorities.

Criminal cases have been initiated under Article 178, Part 2, Clause 2, and similar clauses (2, 5) of the Criminal Code of Armenia to address the thefts perpetrated under the aforementioned scheme from relatives of the individuals in captivity, missing, or deceased. A total of 12 criminal cases have been initiated. As a result of the preliminary investigation, charges have been brought against 9 individuals under the same articles, of which 8 have been remanded in custody as a precautionary measure, while 1 was released on signature not to leave.

8 criminal cases concerning 8 individuals have been submitted to the Court of General Jurisdiction, with court proceedings currently ongoing. A suspect or accused in a criminal act is presumed innocent until proven guilty in accordance with the procedure established by the Criminal Procedure Code of Armenia by a court's legally enforceable judgment.