Body of 49-Year-Old Man Found in Arpa River

The body of a 49-year-old man has been discovered in the Arpa River in the Vayots Dzor region. Various units from the police and rescue services have been conducting search operations for several hours, following reports that a local resident had gone missing.

According to reports from Shamshyan, the search operations were coordinated by Tigran Karapetyan, head of the Vayots Dzor Regional Police Department, alongside officers from the criminal investigation division and community police in Yeghgnadzor, as well as the rescue service's local firefighters, led by Hakob Sargsyan, head of the regional rescue service and commander Suren Harutyunyan. They were searching the 131 km section of the Yerevan-Meghri highway after receiving information about the missing man.

Photojournalist Gagik Shamshyan reported that firefighters and police, along with investigators from the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia's Vayots Dzor regional office, conducted searches over several kilometers, including in densely wooded areas and along a two-kilometer stretch of the Arpa River.

The Vayots Dzor region's prosecutor, Aspurak Avetisyan, also arrived at the scene. Shortly thereafter, police officer Vachik Avagyan, who had been searching in the river up to his waist, discovered the body, while police and rescuers had located clothing near the riverbank, raising suspicions that the clothing belonged to the deceased.

Currently, an examination is underway at the scene, led by V. Hovhannisyan, head of the regional investigative department, and senior investigator A. Harutyunyan, while they await the arrival of divers from the rescue service in Yerevan to recover the body.

The police have cordoned off the area since it's close to a highway, ensuring that curious drivers do not stop, preventing traffic disruptions.

An investigation into the incident has been initiated within the regional investigative department. A forensic examination was ordered by the investigator, and the preliminary conclusion from the forensic doctor indicated that there were no signs of violence on the body.

According to G. Shamshyan, the deceased has been identified as 49-year-old Mayis Kh. from the Vayots Dzor region.