Hovhannes Khudoyan, a member of Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan’s defense team, posted on Facebook what he described as proof that the recordings forming the basis of the charges were edited. He also released the uncut version of one of the recordings, noting that he can do so now as the preliminary investigation in the Sacred Struggle case has been completed.
Khudoyan claims that in the official versions presented by law enforcement, key context was omitted or replaced, certain words were added in transcripts but absent in the audio, and segments from different days were spliced together. He pointed to multiple examples where conversations were cut mid-sentence, replies to questions were removed, or unrelated excerpts were stitched to create misleading impressions.
He argued that while authorities and their supporters claimed the controversial “shoot” remark targeted current government officials, the full recording shows the conversation had a different meaning. According to him, this is only one example of manipulative tactics used in what he calls a fabricated case, promising to reveal more instances in the future.
In June, the Investigative Committee released audio clips involving leaders of the Sacred Struggle, including Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, in which he is heard saying: “You shoot two people against the wall, imprison about 15 people. You execute, give their families compensation for life, and they will even be happy.” The defense has repeatedly demanded the full versions, insisting the published ones were edited.
