Investigation Uncovers Bribery Case of $10,000 for Postponing Draft; Defense Ministry Officials Arrested

The Anti-Corruption Committee of Armenia has established through an investigation that a high-ranking official of the Ministry of Defense, identified as A.T., received a substantial bribe of $10,000 to postpone the conscription of a draft candidate. Furthermore, A.T. utilized his official powers and influence to delay the participation of two citizens in military training exercises in collusion with another official, A.A.

In a separate instance, A.T. accepted a bribe to exempt another citizen from participating in military training exercises. This was reported by the Anti-Corruption Committee.

The investigation revealed that in March 2023, H.M. sought to avoid mandatory military service for his son under the pretense of an unsubstantiated illness. He coordinated with his acquaintance A.G., who, through R.A., reached an agreement with A.T. to facilitate this process. A.T. requested $10,000, equivalent to 3,883,000 AMD, from H.M. via R.A., promising to give R.A. $2,000 for his assistance once the bribe was received.

On March 30, 2023, R.A. informed A.G. that A.T. had demanded an initial payment of $2,500 from the bribe amount. A.G. then relayed this information to H.M., subsequently organizing a meeting between H.M. and R.A. to discuss the details of their agreement. In accordance with the arrangement, R.A. took part of the bribe, $2,500, from H.M., of which $1,000 was given to A.T.

Subsequently, R.A. received the remaining $7,500 from H.M., of which $6,000 was also handed over to A.T. A few days later, R.A. gave A.T. an additional $400, promising to deliver the remaining $600 in a few days. As a result, A.T. effectively received a total of $7,400, equivalent to 2,874,252 AMD.

The investigation also gathered evidence that A.T., along with another Ministry official A.A., received bribes of 120,000 AMD each from two citizens to postpone their participation in military training exercises. Additionally, A.T. demanded as a bribe the provision of a meal for five people at a restaurant owned by a colleague, in exchange for not sending a notification regarding military training exercises.

Upon receiving consent, A.T. and four other Ministry officials visited the restaurant and enjoyed a meal at H.M.'s expense.

Charges have been laid against A.T. under multiple provisions of the Armenian Penal Code, including Article 435, regarding bribery. Meanwhile, R.A., H.M., A.G., and A.A. face similar charges corresponding to their roles in this bribery scheme. It is noted that during the investigation, a detention measure was applied against A.T. and A.A. The investigation has concluded, and the materials related to eight accused individuals have been submitted to the supervisory prosecutor with a request to forward them to the court.