Pavel Manukyan Sentenced to 10 Years, Smbat Barseghyan to 25 Years: Members of 'Sasna Tsrer' Found Guilty

The Court of Appeals of the Republic of Armenia has upheld the verdict in the case concerning the capture of the police battalion, rejecting the defense's appeal for a retrial. According to reports from Armenpress, the court decided to revoke and amend the decision regarding the defendant Armen Bilyan.

The court found Bilyan guilty of crimes under points 2, 3, and 11 of Article 104 of the Criminal Code and sentenced him to 25 years in prison. Pretrial detention has been chosen as a measure of restraint for Bilyan.

Pavel Manukyan was sentenced to 10 years in prison, with his previous two years in detention taken into account, resulting in a final sentence of 7 years of imprisonment. Gagik Yeghiazaryan received 7 years and 5 months, Areg Kyureghyan was sentenced to 7 years and 1 month, and Varujan Avetisyan received 9 years and 6 months, with 2 years already served in pretrial custody resulting in a final sentence of 7 years and 4 months. Smbat Barseghyan was sentenced to 25 years, Sedrak Nazaryan to 8 years and 2 months, Edward Grigoryan to 6 years and 6 months, and Mkhtiar Avetisyan to 7 years and 6 months of imprisonment.

Members of the group known as 'Sasna Tsrer' were found guilty of committing offenses under point 1 of part 3 of Article 218 (hostage-taking by an organized group), part 3 of Article 235 (illegal possession of weapons), and parts 1 and 2 of part 4 of Article 238 (weapons theft by an organized group), as well as points 1, 2, 3, and 11 of part 2 of Article 104 (murder committed by two or more persons in connection with hostage-taking or taking a person captive).