Ruling challenged in fatal crash of pregnant woman hit by Pashinyan convoy vehicle

Both the family of a pregnant woman killed in a 2022 traffic accident involving a vehicle from Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s motorcade and the driver’s defense team have appealed a court ruling that sentenced the officer to 18 months in prison, the victim’s lawyer said on Monday.

Judge Karen Farkhoyan of Yerevan’s General Jurisdiction Court has found police officer Aram Navasardyan guilty of negligent breach of traffic safety rules causing death and leaving the scene of an accident. Navasardyan, who was driving a Toyota Prado escorting Pashinyan, struck 28-year-old Sona Mnatsakanyan, who was 31 weeks pregnant. She later died in hospital.

The victim’s legal successor, Raffi Aslanyan, told Panorama.am that the appeals are now before the Court of Appeal but have not yet been assigned to a panel. He said prosecutors, who sought a harsher sentence, have not filed an appeal despite the court imposing a lighter punishment than requested.

“The court imposed an obviously lenient sentence,” Aslanyan said, adding that Navasardyan remains free pending the appeals process. He warned that if the case drags on until the statute of limitations expires in April 2027, the sentence may never be enforced.

Aslanyan has repeatedly accused the authorities of deliberately delaying proceedings. “It has already been four years. This cannot be unintentional,” he said.