Officials Submitted False Data in Declarations: Prosecutor's Office

In the first half of 2022, three criminal cases were initiated under Article 314.2 of the former Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia (deliberately not submitting declarations to the Commission on the Prevention of Corruption), and four criminal cases were initiated under Article 314.3 (submitting false data in declarations or concealing information subject to declaration).

The initiation of the four criminal cases was based on information provided by the Commission on the Prevention of Corruption to the Prosecutor's Office, data obtained by an investigator while exercising their powers in connection with a crime, a report from the investigation body, and information reported by the media regarding a crime.

In total, 14 criminal cases were initiated throughout 2021 under the two aforementioned criminal offenses, with nine of those investigations continuing into 2022.

Currently, the Anti-Corruption Committee of the Republic of Armenia is conducting investigations into one case of failing to submit declarations deliberately to the Commission on the Prevention of Corruption and 11 cases related to submitting false data in declarations or concealing information subject to declaration.

During the first half of 2022, criminal prosecution was initiated against seven individuals in seven criminal cases. Notably, while only one criminal case was sent to court with an indictment in 2021, four criminal cases against six individuals were forwarded to court in the first half of 2022.

For instance, in one criminal case sent to the court on March 24, 2022, charges were brought against A. Matevosyan, the former deputy of the community head in Mrgavan, Ararat Province, for deliberately failing to submit declarations to the Commission on the Prevention of Corruption. By a court ruling on June 21, 2022, this individual was found guilty and sentenced to one year of imprisonment, with a one-year ban on holding positions in state and local self-government bodies.

In another criminal case sent to court on April 15, 2022, M. Gevorgyan, the head of Gyulagarak community in Lori Province, his wife, and the deputy head of the community R. Vardanian were charged with submitting false data in declarations or concealing declarable information.

In a separate criminal case sent to court on June 22, 2022, R. Vardanian, the deputy head of Gyulagarak community, was charged for deliberately failing to submit declarations.

Additionally, in a case forwarded to court on June 2, 2022, K. Avanesyan, the deputy governor of Syunik Province, was charged with submitting false data in declarations or concealing declarable information.

Moreover, on April 28, 2021, a criminal case against Hrant Davtyan, a member of the National Assembly of the sixth convocation, and his son was sent to the court based on charges of deliberately failing to submit declarations to the Commission on the Prevention of Corruption. On November 10, 2021, the First Instance Court of Yerevan decided to terminate criminal prosecution against them and close the proceedings based on a change of circumstances. However, following the prosecutor's appeal against this judicial act, the Court of Cassation, on March 3, 2022, satisfied the appeal and sent the case back to the First Instance Court for a new examination.

For all the criminal cases where there are doubts about the legality of the origins of the defendants' properties, relevant reports have been sent to the Department for the Confiscation of Illegally Obtained Property of the Prosecutor General's Office of the Republic of Armenia to clarify the grounds for initiating an examination.

Furthermore, it should be noted that under the new Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia, these two offenses have been combined into a single criminal offense, as defined by Article 444 of the Criminal Code.