Armenia’s police make a statement on clashes in Giumry

Yesterday the protest of activists demanding that Russian military base soldier Valery Permyakov suspected of killing a family of six should be handed over to the Armenian side, developed into clashes with the police outside the Russian consulate in Giumry. According to the most recent information, 14 people were injured and 13 were detained. 

The police have several times urged the protesters not to take any illegal or unlawful action while exercising their constitutional right to hold rallies, says the statement. 

Yet, protesters started hurling stones and other items at policemen and put up resistance, according to the statement. After all, the police had to resort to minimum deterrence to prevent unlawful actions, to isolate them and ensure peaceful environment for demonstrators, says the statement. 

Some of the protesters were taken to the police office and, unfortunately, attempts to avoid clashes failed leading to injuries both among the demonstrators and the police, according to the statement. The police also said several people were detained in the Liberty Square in Yerevan on Thursday suspected of unlawful actions. 

The tense situation in Giumry occurred after a family of six, Serezha Avetisyan (born in 1961), Hasmik Avetisyan (born 1959), Aida Avetisyan (1979), Armen Avetisyan (1981), Araksia Poghosyan (1990) and two-year old Hasmik Avetisyan were fatally shot in Giumry on Monday morning. The only who survived was grandchild Serezha Avetisyan who was operated and is currently in intensive care unit at St. Astvatsamayr Medical Center in Yerevan. According to the preliminary information, the suspect is Russian military base conscript Valery Permyakov who was detained while trying to cross Armenia’s border into Turkey on January 13 and admitted guilt. 

Earlier Armenia’s minister of defense Seyran Ohanyan said the murder case should not be politicized due to allied partnership between Armenia and Russia. According to the reports, Armenian and Russian law-enforcement bodies are in close cooperation to investigate the crime. –0--