Judge's Powers Suspended

According to a decision by the Supreme Judicial Council, the powers of Judge Arusyak Aleksanyan of the Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction have been suspended pending the conclusion of a criminal proceeding.

“On October 17, 2022, in a closed session, based on the agreements presented by the Prosecutor General on October 17, 2022, regarding the consent to initiate public criminal proceedings against Judge Arusyak Harutyun Aleksanyan of the Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction and the consent to deprive Judge Arusyak Harutyun Aleksanyan of his liberty, the Supreme Judicial Council decided to suspend the powers of Judge Arusyak Aleksanyan until the completion of the criminal proceedings,” the decision states.

It should be noted that on October 17, officers of the National Security Service (NSS) raided the court building and detained Judge Arusyak Aleksanyan and lawyer Erik Aleksanyan. The Prosecutor General of Armenia had submitted requests to the Supreme Judicial Council, demanding permission to initiate criminal proceedings and deprive Judge Arusyak Aleksanyan of his liberty, which was granted after hours of hearings. The criminal proceedings relate to a case involving a criminal authority.

Specifically, the court decided to release Sergey Grigoryan, known by the nickname “Phaz,” from custody on bail, satisfying the motion submitted by his attorney Erik Aleksanyan. Currently, the NSS accuses the judge of rendering an obviously unjust judicial act and exceeding official powers. In the same proceedings, charges have also been brought against lawyer Erik Aleksanyan, who is accused of assisting Judge Aleksanyan in exceeding her official powers.

The defenders report that the accusation states that lawyer Erik Aleksanyan submitted a motion to the court requesting the lifting of the detention measure imposed on his client and the approval of an alternative measure, which, according to the NSS, assisted the judge. Both Arusyak Aleksanyan and Erik Aleksanyan deny the charges against them. The Prosecutor General’s Office and the NSS have not yet officially disclosed the specifics of the proceedings or the charges against them.