Gyumri Mayor Vardan Ghukasyan and several other officials have been suspended from office in connection with an ongoing corruption-related criminal investigation, according to a statement from Armenia’s Anti-Corruption Committee (ACC).
The ACC noted the high public interest in the case involving allegations of bribery by a group of Gyumri municipal officials and the numerous inquiries received from media outlets. It clarified that court motions were submitted for five out of the eight detainees, seeking pre-trial detention. The court ruled to detain the mayor, place one alleged bribe-giver under house arrest, and continue the investigation for the others. Official decisions have been made to suspend the duties of those holding public office.
The statement also addressed questions about the authenticity of the audio recordings allegedly involving Mayor Ghukasyan.
“In response to claims in the press that the recordings involving the mayor are fake or unrelated to him, the ACC clarifies that in his testimony, the mayor neither denied nor confirmed having the conversation reflected in the recordings. Moreover, he did not claim that the voice was manipulated or altered, instead offering his own explanations and interpretations of the dialogue.”
The committee further noted that several individuals questioned in the investigation have confessed, corroborating the evidence obtained through operational surveillance.
The pre-trial investigation is ongoing.
On October 20, officers from the National Security Service and Police carried out searches at Gyumri City Hall. Mayor Vardan Ghukasyan and seven other municipal employees were detained. The court has now placed Ghukasyan in two-month pre-trial detention.
