NSS Employees Entered the Central Municipality and Accompanied Mayor Samvel Ghukasyan for Interrogation

According to information received by ArmLur.am, Central Mayor Samvel Ghukasyan appeared before the Anti-Corruption Committee and was interrogated. However, prior to the interrogation, significant developments occurred. Our sources indicate that the Anti-Corruption Committee had sent a notice to Mayor Samvel Ghukasyan to appear for questioning; however, he did not attend the committee on the specified date. Consequently, according to our sources, NSS employees entered the mayor's office and, along with the mayor, presented themselves to the investigative body, where Ghukasyan was interrogated.

We attempted to personally verify this information with the Anti-Corruption Committee, but they declined to comment, indicating that they do not disclose information regarding individuals being interrogated in the context of a criminal case.

What is the criminal case context in which Ghukasyan was summoned for interrogation? As is known, based on data obtained at the Yerevan city department of the National Security Service, the NSS Investigative Department has initiated a criminal proceeding, which is being conducted by the RA Anti-Corruption Committee. It has been found that Tigran Martirosyan, who is a protégé and partner of Mayor Samvel Ghukasyan, while holding the position of head of the department for organizing public utilities and the management of multi-apartment buildings within the administrative region of Yerevan's Center, along with an employee of the same department, Arman H., received a total bribe of approximately 1 million 700 thousand AMD from various individuals.

According to the data obtained during the preliminary investigation, the aforementioned individuals, using their official authority and influence, provided information to the director of a company responsible for urgent tasks in the Center administrative district in order to ensure mandatory participation of that businessman in urgent procurement procedures, for which on July 11, 2023, they received a bribe of 1,000,000 AMD.

Moreover, Tigran Martirosyan, again in preliminary agreement with Arman H., used their official authorities and influence to ignore and not record the work of installing passageways in front of cafes operated by N. A. and A. A. in Yerevan, for which they received around 700,000 AMD in bribes during July and August 2023.

On November 13, 2023, both officials who received bribes and two individuals who provided them have been arrested. Tigran Martirosyan, head of the public utilities department in the Center administrative district, and the department employee have been detained. It is within this context of the criminal case that Samvel Ghukasyan was interrogated. We will continue to monitor the progress of the investigation.