Diplomatic Passport Found in Aragatson Unvalid, Ministry of Foreign Affairs States

The diplomatic passport found in the diocese of Aragatson and during searches of the residences of clergy members is no longer valid, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia.

The ministry informed Radar Armenia that “the diplomatic passport depicted in the image released by the Investigative Committee was issued in 2013, and its validity expired in 2018.”

It is noteworthy that on the early morning of October 15, law enforcement agencies conducted a search at the residence of Bishop Mkrtich Proshyan, the head of the Aragatson diocese, and subsequently took him into custody. Alongside the bishop, 12 other priests from the Aragatson diocese and employees of the diocese were also detained. Later, the Investigative Committee announced that three individuals had been arrested, including the head of the diocese. He is facing public criminal prosecution under two articles of the Criminal Code for obstructing the exercise of electoral rights by abusing his official position and for forcing participation in gatherings using governmental or official powers.

According to the Investigative Committee, over twenty searches were conducted, resulting in the discovery and seizure of documents of significance for the criminal proceedings, electronic data storage devices, large sums of money, a significant amount of gold and silver jewelry, fuel vouchers, and various other items. Photographs released by the Committee also included the diplomatic passport.