The detention of Robert Kocharyan, Armenia’s second president, has been extended for another two months, his lawyer, Aram Orbelyan, said, according to Sputnik Armenia.
Judge Vardges Stepanyan of Armenia’s Anti-Corruption Court ruled in favor of a motion filed by prosecutor Tsovak Mnatsakanyan. The prosecution justified its request by arguing that Kocharyan could obstruct the preliminary investigation if released from custody.
“We have not yet reviewed the contents of the court’s ruling, but we intend to appeal it, as we have already identified problematic points in the charges,” Orbelyan said.
The defense team had previously stated that the measure was being imposed despite the fact that Kocharyan, as a person entitled to state protection, is under the supervision of State Protection Service officers around the clock, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
On August 25, law enforcement officers entered and began searching the residences of Robert Kocharyan and his son Levon Kocharyan, a member of parliament from the opposition Armenia faction. Reports subsequently emerged that Robert Kocharyan and his eldest son, Sedrak Kocharyan, had been detained. A court later ordered Sedrak Kocharyan held in pretrial detention for two months. On August 27, a similar ruling was issued against Robert Kocharyan, ordering his detention for two months.
Robert Kocharyan has been charged with abuse of official powers, money laundering on an especially large scale, and accepting bribes of an especially large amount.
