VIDEO: Employees and Military Personnel of Artsakh's State Bodies Arrested While Committing State Treason

The Armenian National Security Service's military counterintelligence and investigative departments conducted extensive operational-intelligence and combined judicial actions, leading to the exposure and neutralization of yet another espionage network operating in Armenia and Artsakh, created by foreign intelligence services. This network involved individuals serving in various units of the armed forces, former servicemen, and certain employees of the Artsakh Republic's state bodies.

During the preliminary investigation of the criminal case initiated by the NSS's investigative department, it was revealed that foreign intelligence operatives recruited the aforementioned individuals by posting fake job advertisements on social media, offering high-paying jobs in foreign countries, and requiring job seekers to fill out their personal and biographical data through a relevant application.

Subsequently, for a fee, foreign intelligence officers proposed collaboration in exchange for information about strategically significant objects in Artsakh and Armenia, military equipment, troop deployments, weaponry, military ammunition, personal data of military personnel, their numbers and locations, combat positions, state and service secret documents, among other things. In certain cases, recruited individuals met with representatives of foreign intelligence services in third countries, received codenames, and signed documents verifying their cooperation with these representatives. They became operational agents and agreed to provide information about events in the political and military fields within the country and to hand over documents containing state, military, and service secrets.

To ensure the comprehensive and successful implementation of assigned tasks, the foreign intelligence services provided the recruited individuals with necessary technical equipment, including computers equipped with special software and technical means.

Moreover, during the investigation, factual data was obtained indicating that some individuals involved in the espionage network were also previously informed about the impending war against the Artsakh Republic and its specific date. Consequently, at the behest of representatives of foreign intelligence services, they actively gathered information and transmitted it via various mobile applications regarding individuals who arrived in Artsakh and were accommodated in hotels, types and quantities of air defense systems located in Artsakh, locations, and crucial personal data of the top command, thereby providing the adversary with a genuine opportunity to accurately calculate the forces and means before initiating the war, conduct targeted strikes, neutralize air defense systems, and destroy strategically significant stockpiles.

Based on direct suspicions of committing state treason, a total of 16 individuals have been arrested, some of whom have provided confessions. Requests have been submitted to the court to select imprisonment as a measure of restraint for 10 of them, which have been granted.

Furthermore, some individuals who committed state treason were apprehended while carrying out assignments, and the NSS successfully prevented further transmission of information.

The National Security Service continues to relentlessly and uncompromisingly combat these crimes, which undermine the foundations of the state, assuring that it has full control over the operational situation and warning that anyone involved in espionage activities will be identified and subjected to punishment or other legal repercussions.

At the same time, the public, especially military personnel, is urged to refrain from establishing contacts with suspicious individuals through social networks or other means, particularly concerning discussions and transmissions of information related to the safety and defense of the Republic of Armenia.

The NSS reiterates that Article 299 of the Armenian Criminal Code includes a provision for mitigation, stating that a person committing offenses of state treason or espionage can be exempted from criminal liability if they voluntarily report to authorities or assist in preventing further harm. Therefore, it calls upon individuals involved in illegal actions to cooperate voluntarily and in a timely manner with the NSS to prevent further damage.

Notice: The suspect of the alleged crime is considered innocent until proven guilty in accordance with the procedure established by the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Armenia by a legally binding court decision.