Former Culture Minister Hasmik Poghosyan Sentenced to 4 Years and 6 Months in Prison with Amnesty Applied

The Prosecutor General's Office announced on October 18, 2023, that Hasmik Poghosyan, who served as Armenia's Minister of Culture from 2012 to 2016, used her official powers to damage state interests by aiding a criminal group in fraudulently seizing a 300-square-meter area of land allocated to the "Yerevan P. Tchaikovsky Secondary Music School" Public Educational Institution for gratuitous use.

It is noteworthy that concerning this area, the property rights to a 235.8-square-meter space built at 36/3 Koghbatsi Street in Yerevan were transferred to the Republic of Armenia within the framework of a civil lawsuit.

On September 27, 2023, the Prosecutor General initiated public criminal proceedings against Hasmik Poghosyan. On October 4, 2023, a portion of the case concerning the former culture minister was separated and handed over to the Anti-Corruption Court.

According to the Anti-Corruption Court's ruling on November 6, 2025, Hasmik Poghosyan was found guilty of abuse of official power and aiding in large-scale fraud and was sentenced to 4 years and 6 months in prison. This court decision has now entered into legal force.

By the same ruling, the defendant Hasmik Poghosyan has been exempted from punishment under Article 2, Part 1, Point 2 of the law on declaring amnesty related to the 2800th anniversary of Erebuni-Yerevan and the 100th anniversary of the proclamation of the First Republic of Armenia, which came into effect on November 6, 2018.