Armenia orders detention of six "Strong Armenia" candidates

Armenian authorities have ordered the detention of six parliamentary candidates from the “Strong Armenia” party, led by Russian oligarch Samvel Karapetyan, as part of a criminal investigation involving alleged electoral violations and financial crimes.

The decision was announced by the Investigative Committee of Armenia and reported by Caliber.Az, citing local media.

According to the committee, public criminal prosecution has been initiated against the six candidates within the framework of a preliminary investigation conducted by the Department for the Investigation of General and Electoral Crimes under the Main Directorate for the Investigation of Particularly Important Cases.

The case concerns allegations of the material inducement of numerous individuals, as well as money laundering on an especially large scale. The suspects are being prosecuted under Part 2 of Article 46-236 and Point 3 of Part 3 of Article 296 of Armenia’s Criminal Code.

Authorities have issued detention orders for the individuals, with their enforcement entrusted to the police of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The Investigative Committee said the preliminary investigation is ongoing.

By Tamilla Hasanova