Decision on Vahan Kerobyan's Detention Measure Published

The former Minister of Economy of Armenia, Vahan Kerobyan, has been placed under house arrest for a duration of two months. The decision was announced a short while ago at the Anti-Corruption Court (Judge: Sargis Dadoyan).

According to the court's ruling, during the two-month period, Vahan Kerobyan is prohibited from hosting guests or having contact with other individuals at his residence. He is also not allowed to use the telephone except to call for emergency medical assistance, law enforcement, or emergency services.

Furthermore, he is banned from correspondence or using any other forms of communication. The house arrest is set to begin on February 15th.

The decision can be appealed to the Court of Appeal of Armenia within ten days after receiving the court act.

On February 15th, a request was made to detain Vahan Kerobyan. On February 14th, he announced his resignation from the position of Minister of Economy. On February 15th, it was revealed that Kerobyan had been accused of abusing official authority in connection with the ‘Synergy’ company case. Kerobyan denies the charges.

Earlier on February 15th, the Investigative Committee reported that criminal proceedings had been initiated against eight individuals for apparent abuses during a procurement competition for the needs of the Ministry of Economy, five of whom are officials of the ministry.

Previously, in the ongoing apparent corruption case at the Ministry of Economy, former Deputy Minister Ani Ispiryan was arrested, along with Ani Gevorgyan, the wife of the brother of the Speaker of the National Assembly Alen Simonyan, who worked at the ‘Synergy’ company, and Ashot Hovhannesyan, the founder and head of the company, as well as employee Lili Mkryan. Later, house arrest was chosen as a measure for Ani Ispiryan, while the other three were detained.

Members of the ruling ‘Civil Contract’ faction in the National Assembly have submitted a request to the Prosecutor’s Office to change the detention measures for Ashot Hovhannesyan, Ani Gevorgyan, and Lili Mkryan. On February 12, 2024, the prosecutor, on his own initiative, changed the detention measures for the defendants under investigation in the criminal proceedings of the Investigative Committee, specifically for ‘Synergy’ company employees Ani Gevorgyan and Lili Mkryan.