Armenia appoints manager for wine factory owned by opposition leader

Armenian Economy Minister Gevorg Papoyan has appointed Garik Boshyan as a new state manager for the Yerevan Ararat Brandy, Wine and Vodka Factory, which was recently placed under state control.

Papoyan denied media reports claiming the government had confiscated the company's shares, stressing that they had been transferred to state management rather than seized, Caliber.Az reports, citing Armenian media.

Earlier, Armenia's Anti-Corruption Court ruled that the factory, owned by oligarch and leader of the opposition Prosperous Armenia party Gagik Tsarukyan, be placed under state control.

Tsarukyan was arrested on July 7 and remanded in custody for two months.

He faces charges of aiding large-scale fraud and money laundering.

He is also under investigation in a separate case involving the illegal hunting of wild animals.

Around 70 companies linked to Tsarukyan have been sealed and remain idle.

During the election campaign, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, criticising Tsarukyan's party, threatened to strip the businessman of his assets and "leave him penniless."

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov