Ruling party: Armenian tycoon must feel law and order

Secretary of the Armenian ruling Civil Contract faction Artur Hovhannisyan has said that criminal actions against Armenian oligarch Samvel Karapetyan were initiated after he made threatening statements.

His comments were aimed at countering the narrative that Karapetyan’s prosecution is a politically motivated retaliation following remarks made by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Caliber.Az reports, citing Armenian media.

Hovhannisyan dismissed these claims, stating: "An individual with vested interests in another country made a public statement amid the current political climate, using terms like ‘a small group’ and suggesting that if political tools fail, they will resolve matters in their own way. What Samvel Karapetyan said has nothing to do with legitimate political discourse."

He added that Karapetyan’s comments amounted to threats against the state and must be assessed both politically and criminally.

"As the prime minister rightly said, such individuals must feel law and order. That is exactly the process we are now engaged in," Hovhannisyan added. 

To recall, oligarch Samvel Karapetyan was arrested on June 18 and placed in two-month pre-trial detention on charges of publicly inciting the seizure of power.

Karapetyan, Armenian-Russian businessman and head of the Tashir Group, warned that if Armenia’s political leaders fail to halt Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s campaign against the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC), he and his associates will intervene.

Karapetyan condemned attacks on the Church, highlighting its millennia-old significance to the Armenian people. Shortly after his statement, Armenian media reported Karapetyan’s detention by law enforcement, though official details remain unclear. Police have also begun searching his home and detained several individuals.

By Naila Huseynova