Why the Chief Prosecutor Did Not Meet with the Relatives of the Fallen Today: Clarification

Today, the Prosecutor General of Armenia, Arthur Davtyan, refused to meet with the relatives of the soldiers who fell during the 44-day war, stating that he had no new information, and discussions were underway regarding the transfer of the case.

The relatives of the fallen soldiers, who staged a protest in front of the Prosecutor's Office, demanded that the case initiated under Part 2 of Article 308 (abuse of official powers resulting in serious consequences) be transferred to the National Security Service (NSS).

Lurer.com attempted to obtain clarifications on their questions from the advisor to the Prosecutor General, Gor Abrahamyan. He explained: “All their questions are in the appropriate processes, and all previously submitted motions have essentially been granted. The jurisdiction of the investigation has changed. In other words, there is a connection through the relevant documentation, and there is no issue here.”

Regarding the question of why their meeting with A. Davtyan did not take place, G. Abrahamyan noted that meetings concerning similar issues are not always logical. “They were invited to meet with the Prosecutor General last week, raised their questions, and received the appropriate clarifications from the Prosecutor's Office,” he added.

In response to the demand to transfer the case to the NSS, G. Abrahamyan stated that the issue of investigative jurisdiction is not resolved based on preferences or priorities. “There must be objective circumstances that justify the necessity for the Prosecutor’s Office to change the jurisdiction of any case. If such grounds arise in this case, naturally, that issue will be resolved,” Abrahamyan emphasized.

He reminded that previously, this criminal case was being investigated by the Anti-Corruption Committee, but considering the opinions of the parents and certain objective circumstances, the body conducting the case was changed by the Prosecutor General, handing it over to the Investigative Committee to ensure the completeness and objectivity of the preliminary investigation.

G. Abrahamyan stressed that the Prosecutor’s Office is actually overseeing the legality of the investigations. Regarding when answers would be provided to the relatives of the fallen soldiers, he mentioned that as a representative of the Prosecutor's Office, he could not currently respond to this question because actions are underway within the framework of the criminal case, and answers to certain questions could be given based on the results of those actions.