Charges against former Armenian president reclassified New criminal case initiated

The Armenian Anti-Corruption Committee is set to review the case against former President Robert Kocharyan and several others following a significant reclassification of the charges against them.

The reclassification from the original charge to abuse power has led to the initiation of a new criminal investigation. The Court of Cassation authorized this move, with the decision now available on the court's official website, Caliber.Az reports citing Armenian media.

Earlier, Armenia’s Constitutional Court ruled that Part 3 of Article 309.1 of the Armenian Criminal Procedure Code, which governs amendments to charges, was constitutional. This ruling allowed the prosecutor's office to reclassify the charges and launch a fresh investigation into Kocharyan and his associates.

On September 12, the Court of Cassation overturned a previous decision made by the Court of Appeal on November 26, 2021, and directed that the case be sent to the Anti-Corruption Court.

The case involves Robert Kocharyan, Armenia's second president, along with former Deputy Prime Minister Armen Gevorgyan, former Defence Minister Seyran Ohanyan, and former Chief of General Staff and Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Secretary General Yuri Khachaturov.

Previously, these individuals faced charges under Article 300.1 of the Armenian Criminal Code related to the alleged overthrow of the constitutional order. However, in 2021, the prosecution against Kocharyan was halted after the Constitutional Court deemed the relevant article unconstitutional, leading to the reclassification of the charges.