Former Deputy Prime Minister of Armenia Accused of Large-Scale Money Laundering

The Anti-Corruption Committee of Armenia has established that between 2000 and 2018, a former senior official who held various positions including the First Assistant to the President, Head of the Presidential Administration, Secretary of the National Security Council, Minister of Territorial Administration and Development, and Deputy Prime Minister, laundered illegal income amounting to 4,921,302,379 AMD. The purpose was to conceal and distort the true nature and origin of assets obtained through criminal means.

The investigation revealed that between 2004 and 2018, a total of 39 properties located in Yerevan and other regions of Armenia were registered in the names of this high-ranking official and their close relatives. The contractual value of these properties in Yerevan and other regions amounted to 751,268,208 AMD, while their average market value at the time of the transactions exceeded 4,843,530,000 AMD.

Additionally, 10 properties linked to this official in Czech Republic have a combined market value equivalent to 920,000 USD, which is approximately 391,920,000 AMD. It has also been established that these individuals have circulated monetary funds through banking transactions, but the ratio between the market values of the acquired properties and the circulated monetary funds significantly differed from the income they reported.

A charge has been brought against the former high-ranking official for money laundering, in accordance with Article 190, Part 3, Points 1 and 3 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia, adopted on April 18, 2003. The criminal investigation has been completed, and the materials of the case have been submitted to the supervising prosecutor for approval and referral to the court.