Activist Vazgen Saghatelyan placed in custody

A court in Yerevan on Saturday ordered opposition figure Vazgen Saghatelyan to be remanded in pre-trial custody for two months, his lawyer Arsen Babayan said.

"Vazgen Saghatelyan is being moved to the Armavir Penitentiary," the lawyer told reporters, unveiling plans to appeal the decision.

Babayan added that presiding judge Nelly Baghdasaryan refused to consider alternative measures of restraint against the activist, granting the investigator’s motion.

Vazgen Saghatelyan and his fellow activist Narek Samsonyan, who co-host the Imnemnimi Podcast, were arrested on charges of  “hooliganism” on Friday.

The charges stem from the March 20 Imnemnimi episode, where they used "swear words" to criticize the government. 

The defense lawyers have rejected the charges as politically motivated, accusing Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of cracking down on his critics.