Kocharian was taken into custody in the morning as law-enforcement officers searched his home, the apartments of Levon and his older son Sedrak as well as the offices of businesses owned by them. Sedrak Kocharian and four other individuals were also arrested as a result.
Armenia’s Anti-Corruption Committee (ACC) claimed that Robert Kocharian, who had ruled the country from 1998-2008, had abused his powers to acquire state-owned property at cutdown prices. It also accused him of money laundering and bribery.
Kocharian, who will turn 72 on August 31, was rushed to hospital from the ACC headquarters in Yerevan following a reported deterioration of his health. This did not stop investigators from petitioning a Yerevan court to sanction his pretrial detention.
For his part, Sedrak Kocharian was charged with assisting in the alleged crimes attributed to his father. The four other detainees are current and former chief executives of companies linked to Kocharian’s family. Another law-enforcement agency, the Investigative Committee, charged them with tax evasion.
Kocharian’s Hayastan alliance condemned the arrests as politically motivated and pledged to continue to challenge the Armenian government.
“This is not a legal process,” it said in a statement. “This is a blatant subordination of the state apparatus to the political fears and vengefulness of one person … Neither President Kocharian nor his family nor our political team can be suppressed or forced to come to terms with the current situation.”
The crackdown followed Monday’s tense verbal exchange between Pashinian and Levon Kocharian, who is a parliament deputy from Hayastan, during a parliament debate on the Armenian government’s five-year policy program. A question asked by Kocharian Jr. left Pashinian fuming.
“Why is your family a millionaire?” said the premier. “Where did you get that wealth from? You mean to say that your millions will be inherited by your children and your children [will then bequeath them to] their children … I’m telling you straight up that it won’t happen.”
“The court should decide what should be returned to whom, not the country’s top official,” Levon Kocharian hit back, accusing Pashinian of violating his family’s presumption of innocence and exerting pressure on the court.
“Judge not, that ye be not judged: for with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged,” Pashinian replied, quoting the Bible. “Now what I’ve told you [means] yes, I am judging you and I will judge you, and I am ready to be judged with the same judgment.”
Hayastan was one of the three main opposition groups that challenged Pashinian in the June 7 parliamentary elections and accused him of rigging them. Pashinian has repeatedly pledged to jail their top leaders, including Kocharian, before and after the elections. His critics say these statements prove that law-enforcement authorities cracking down on the Armenian opposition act on his illegal orders. Dozens of opposition leaders, members and supporters have been arrested in recent months.
