Armenia’s Criminal Court of Appeal allows prosecutors to re-arrest head of Izmirlian medical center

YEREVAN, August 23. /ARKA/. Armenia’s Criminal Court of Appeal on Monday allowed prosecutors to re-arrest the head of Izmirlian medical center Armen Charchyan.

Charchyan ran for the June 20 snap parliamentary elections on the ticket of the opposition Hayastan (Armenia) alliance, led by ex-president Robert Kocharyan. He was arrested in June on charges of obstructing the free expression of the will of voters, giving and receiving electoral bribes.

A video of Charchyan’s meeting with his staff leaked by a non-governmental organization showed him telling his subordinates that they must vote in the snap elections and cast their ballots in favor of the Hayastan alliance or face “much tougher treatment” by the hospital management.

He was indicted under an article of the Criminal Code that prohibits any coercion of voters. Charchyan rejected the accusations as baseless and politically motivated.

On July 21 a lower court in Yerevan ruled that Armen Charchyan be released from custody on 15 million dram ($30,000) bail pending investigation. Shortly afterwards Charchyan picked a parliamentary mandate and become a member of the Hayastan opposition faction in the National Assembly.

Two other members of the Hayastan alliance, elected to parliament - former mayor of Meghri Mkhitar Zakaryan and former mayor of Sisian Artur Sargsyan were arrested several weeks ago on charges of abuse of office and forgery. The opposition considers them to be political prisoners. Hayastan took this issue to the Constitutional Court.

However, the prosecutors argue that the prosecution of former Sisian mayor Artur Sargsyan and former Meghri mayor Mkhitar Zakaryan began when they were still candidates for parliament member and the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) had agreed to their immunity being removed. -0-