Lawyer dismisses charges against Samvel Karapetyan as 'absurd'

Lawyer Aram Vardevanyan has strongly criticized the charges against businessman and philanthropist Samvel Karapetyan as “baseless and absurd”. Karapetyan has been placed in pre-trial detention for two months on charges of making public calls to seize power in Armenia following his statements of support for the Armenian Apostolic Church.

“This case is unique because there is no criminal offense to speak of,” Vardevanyan told a press conference on Wednesday.

He stated that Karapetyan is being prosecuted for allegedly calling for the overthrow of the government, yet no such call has been made. “Pursuing a criminal case without any evidence of such a call is a legal absurdity,” he emphasized.

Vardevanyan pointed to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's threats against Karapetyan in a Facebook post on June 17. “We have never seen such conduct in any European country, where pledges of retribution and prosecution are made on social media,” he said.

The lawyer asserted that the charges are politically motivated and stem from Karapetyan’s outspoken support for the Armenian Church. “Even the investigator has acknowledged it,” he added.