Ex-president Sargsyan's ally apprehended in Armenia for major embezzlement charges

Aragats Akhoyan, a former member of the Armenian parliament affiliated with ex-president Serzh Sargsyan's party, has been apprehended in connection with a substantial embezzlement and fraud case.

According to reports from Armenian media cited by Caliber.Az, the Investigative Committee disclosed details of the criminal investigation without directly naming the accused, though media sources have identified him as Akhoyan. Allegedly, Akhoyan, who owned two companies involved in constructing a residential complex in Yerevan's Arabkir administrative district between 2010 and 2014, borrowed a total of 274.7 million drams (over $704,000) from six individuals seeking to purchase apartments and parking spaces within the development. However, instead of depositing these funds into the companies' accounts, Akhoyan reportedly diverted them for personal use.

Additionally, in a separate incident in 2010, Akhoyan purportedly agreed with a client and accepted a $34,000 advance payment for an apartment that was never delivered. Furthermore, in 2008, he allegedly acquired several real estate units valued at 110 million drams (over $282,000) but only fulfilled a fraction of the agreed-upon payment. Based on this evidence, charges were brought against him, and the court opted to detain him.

It's worth mentioning that last year, Akhoyan faced accusations of inciting public violence during protest activities. Although he was detained, he was subsequently released at the end of January 2024, and the case against him was closed.