Verdict of 'Alraghatsi Lyovik' Case Annulled: What is Known

The Prosecutor General of Armenia, Anna Vardapetyan, has submitted a cassation appeal demanding the annulment of the verdict against former National Assembly member Levon Sargsyan, known by the nickname 'Alraghatsi Lyovik', and requested that the case be sent for re-examination. This was reported by 'Pastinfo'.

The Court of Appeals states that the basis for the verdict in this criminal case, besides the evidence collected in the criminal case, was also the verdict made on May 24, 2011, in the criminal case number EKD/0012/01/10 by the Court of General Jurisdiction for the Center and Norq-Marash Administrative Regions of Yerevan.

The Court of Appeals finds it necessary to note that this verdict has specific significance for the resolution of this criminal case, considering that during the court hearing, the prosecution expressed the position that it was unnecessary to prove the fact of robbery in this case, as it had been established by the lawful verdict of May 24, 2011, in the mentioned criminal case.

The Court of Appeals determined that under the circumstances of assigning such significance to the verdict in case number EKD/0012/01/10 dated May 24, 2011, the appellant's claims that the fact of being the secretary of hearings in that case could have a significant impact on the presiding judge's evaluation of evidence and the formation of internal conviction, potentially creating an appearance of bias, are valid from the perspective of a reasonable observer.

It notes that although there is no factual data casting doubt on the impartiality of the presiding judge in this criminal case, the presiding judge T. Grigoryan did not disclose the fact that he had served as the secretary of hearings in case number EKD/0012/01/10, failing to provide the parties with sufficient guarantees to exclude doubts regarding his perceived bias in this criminal case.

Thus, considering that the verdict was passed without disclosing the alleged exclusion that would remove the presiding judge from participation until the start of the trial, the Court finds that the conclusion of a verdict rendered by an appearing impartial court raises doubts, hence it should be annulled and sent back to the same court for a new examination with a different composition.

The Court of Appeals has also left unchanged the measures of restraint selected for the accused. In October, the Chief Prosecutor of Armenia submitted a cassation appeal demanding the annulment of the appellate court's decision. The reporting judge is Hamlet Asatryan.

It is worth noting that Levon Sargsyan was located and arrested in Zelenograd, Moscow Oblast, Russia, on November 21, 2019. He was transferred to Armenia on August 6 and is currently in the 'Yerevan-Center' penitentiary.

Levon Sargsyan is accused of commissioning a robbery that took place at the residence of former head of the Customs Committee, Armen Avetisyan, about 14 years ago. This robbery occurred in October 2008. According to the NSS report, the actual organizer of the robbery at Armen Avetisyan's residence was Levon Sargsyan, a former member of the National Assembly known as 'Alraghatsi Lyovik', who, with tense relations with Armen Avetisyan, commissioned members of a criminal group that had already committed a number of robberies to carry out this crime. The other defendant in the case, Suren Ghazaryan, is accused of assisting Levon Sargsyan.