Fraudulent Claims of Missing Soldier's Daughter Result in 11 Million Drams Paid, Ministry of Defense Reveals

The Ministry of Defense of Armenia has uncovered alleged illegal activities following operational and investigative measures conducted by the RA MOD's Special Investigation Service. On November 12, 2020, a citizen named Kh. A.'s daughter, A. A., submitted a claim to the commission concerning "Soldiers Missing in Action, Captured During Military Operations, and Other Persons," stating that her father, who she claimed participated in the 44-day war, had gone out from home and no longer had any information about him.

Based on this application, Kh. A. was included in the list of missing military personnel and volunteers. On July 30, 2021, A. A. applied to the General Jurisdiction Court of Kotayk Province regarding case C/D8867/02/21, requesting that Kh. A. be declared missing. She asserted in court that her father voluntarily participated in the 2020 44-day war and that there had been no information available about him for a long time.

On November 22, 2021, by the ruling of the same court, Kh. A. was declared a missing person. In accordance with the law on "Compensation for Damage to Life or Health Caused to Military Personnel During the Defense of the Republic of Armenia", A. A. and A. A. were recognized as heirs of Kh. A., each receiving an immediate payment of 5,000,000 Drams, along with a monthly remuneration of 500,000 Drams for the period of March to June 2022, totaling 11,000,000 Drams.

However, the operational-investigative measures conducted by the Ministry of Defense revealed that Kh. A. had not been drafted during the 44-day war, had not volunteered, and had not been killed. Kh. A. was located in the Martakert region of the Republic of Artsakh, and it was clarified that he had informed his daughters back in July 2019 that he was moving to the Hovtashen community in Artsakh for permanent residence. Kh. A. also stated that he did not participate in the 44-day war.

Taking into account that acts committed by A. A., A. A., and officials from the Ministry of Defense exhibit elements of crimes prescribed under Articles 255 (Fraud) and 550 (Negligence of Military Officials) of the RA Criminal Code, the relevant documents have been sent to the RA Investigative Committee for further proceedings.