Vahe Hovhannisyan Interrogated by Anti-Corruption Committee: Investigation Ongoing for Nearly a Year

The Minister of Finance of the Republic of Armenia, Vahe Hovhannisyan, has been interrogated by the investigation department of the Anti-Corruption Committee, which is examining transnational and other types of corrupt offenses. This was reported in response to a written inquiry from 'Paktinfo'.

‘At the same time, I would like to inform you that the preliminary investigation is continuing,’ stated V. Khachatryan, the deputy head of the investigation department of the Anti-Corruption Committee.

No further details have been provided regarding Hovhannisyan's status; it appears he currently does not have the status of a defendant, although the one-year anniversary of the initiation of the criminal proceedings is approaching. It is noteworthy that a group of lawyers submitted a report to the Prosecutor General's Office on December 4, 2024, concerning the initiation of criminal proceedings regarding corrupt acts by Finance Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan.

‘Anti-Corruption Committee investigator B. Chilingaryan refused to initiate criminal proceedings on December 25, 2024. Appeals submitted to the Prosecutor General's Office and subsequently to the Anti-Corruption Court were rejected, which has also been contested. As a result, on April 3, 2025, the Appellate Anti-Corruption Court, presided over by Judge Karen Amiryan, overturned the decision of the Anti-Corruption Court and made a replacement judicial act obliging the public participant of the proceedings to initiate criminal proceedings.

The Appellate Anti-Corruption Court found that the report concerning 'J Code' LLC was a proper report, additionally noting the following: ‘Based on the report regarding 'J Code' LLC, the date of Vahe Hovhannisyan's appointment to the position of Deputy Minister of Finance (transitioning to public service) was August 18, 2021, and he received a $1,000,000 interest-free loan and a $50,000 donation, subsequently acquiring 100% of the shares of 'Caritas Italiana' LLC (as Alla Avoyan has allegedly been the director of 'Caritas', it is presumed that he bought exactly that 100% share). According to the statement submitted in 2021, Vahe Hovhannisyan owns the shares of 'Caritas Italiana' LLC. On January 10, 2022, 'Caritas Italiana' LLC was reorganized, and after the reorganization, the company became 'J Code' LLC. Furthermore, Hovhannisyan's declaration for that year indicates that at the end of the year, those shares still amounted to $1,050,000. In the 2023 declaration, those shares 'disappear'. After the reorganization, the 100% owner of the company, Rubik Armenaki Karapetyan, who is presumably Hovhannisyan's uncle.’

Subsequently, the Appellate Anti-Corruption Court also pointed out the loan of 52,614,000 AMD provided by Vahe Hovhannisyan to 'J Code' LLC, the exemption from the customs duty for imported goods worth 1.5 billion AMD, as per the government decision dated November 9, 2023, and other circumstances.

The Appellate Court determined that ‘... the report presented regarding 'J Code' LLC contains substantive information about an apparent crime, therefore, the procedural act of refusal to initiate criminal proceedings by B. Chilingaryan, deputy head of the investigation department of the Anti-Corruption Committee, did not properly analyze and legally assess the content of the report presented by Ara Zohrapyan,’ Zohrapyan stated.

The Prosecutor's Office has filed a cassation appeal against the ruling of the Appellate Court, which was not accepted for examination; thus, the ruling of the Appellate Court has gained legal force, resulting in the initiation of criminal proceedings against Finance Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan. The criminal proceedings were initiated on May 15, 2025, under the first part of Article 442 of the Criminal Code of Armenia concerning the illegal participation of a public official in entrepreneurial activities,” the news outlet reported.