Attorney Marine Farmanyan told reporters outside the Investigative Committee that, alongside the detained clergy, several female staff members of the Aragatsotn Diocese have also been arrested. Among them are the diocese’s accountant, chief accountant, and administrative secretary.
Meanwhile, employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ Rescue Service, accompanied by special forces from the National Security Service (NSS), entered the headquarters of the Aragatsotn Diocese. According to Sputnik Armenia, some of them wore protective helmets and carried crowbars.
Footage from the outlet shows one of the officers removing a chest from the diocesan building and attempting to pry it open using a crowbar.
Currently, the doors to the diocesan headquarters and affiliated churches remain closed.
On October 15, eleven clergy members from the Aragatsotn Diocese, including Bishop Mkrtich Proshyan, were detained. The Investigative Committee reported the detentions were carried out as part of a criminal investigation into allegations of coercing or obstructing participation in an assembly.
The case was launched following public remarks by priest Aram Asatryan on Public Television, claiming that the diocesan leadership had forced him and other priests to attend opposition protests in 2021. Daniel Ioannisyan, head of the Union of Informed Citizens NGO, filed a complaint with the Prosecutor General's Office, citing the priest’s claims.
