Armenia arrests colonels following another corruption scandal

The Armenian law enforcement agencies have arrested high-ranking military officers involved in abuse and fraud while buying tents for the army.

According to the files of the case published by the Prosecutor General’s Office, officials of the Armenian Ministry of Defense violated the law “On Procurement” and bought tents from one person bypassing the requirement for holding a tender and without a special or exclusive right (the procurement regime is used during emergency purchase of weapons and military equipment), Caliber.Az reports referring to the Armenian media.

As a result, six unified sanitary tents-56 worth 4.8 million drams (over $10,000) were purchased from an individual in August 2021.

Moreover, the same high-ranking military officers, without announcing a tender and without the corresponding product characteristics, purchased 261 tents worth 7.6 million drams from one company (about $16,500 at the current exchange rate) in May 2021 and bought them at inflated prices, thereby causing big damage to the budget.

Proceeding from the available data, the charge was brought against the head of the clothing service of the logistics department of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, Colonel A.T., as well as the deputy commander for logistics support of one of the military units, Colonel A.K. in December 2021. They were arrested and removed from their posts.

Later, the charge was brought against the head of the clothing service of the same unit and two other people. House arrest was chosen as a measure of restraint.

The Prosecutor General's Office reports that the court of general jurisdiction rejected the investigation bodies’ petition to extend the term of arrest for Colonel A.T. on March 23, 2022.

In response, the prosecutor's office filed an appeal to a higher instance court, which met it on April 22, the message says.