Fifth dismissal rocks Armenia's Ararat amid child sexual abuse scandal

Armenia’s Ararat Province has seen a fifth senior official step down in the wake of a harrowing child abuse case involving two underage sisters.

The Prosecutor General’s Office confirmed that regional prosecutor Vardan Poghosyan resigned on Friday. His departure follows the dismissal of four other senior figures on Thursday, including Saribek Rustamyan, head of the regional criminal police; Armen Mkrtchyan, chief of the Vedi community police; Tigran Shokhoyan, head of the provincial investigative committee; and Lernik Vardanyan, chief of Vedi’s investigative division.

The scandal first came to light on 12 February, when the Vedi school authorities reported suspicions of sexual abuse. Lawyers representing the minors allege that law enforcement inaction allowed the abuse to continue until 22 April. The case only gained momentum after investigative journalist Suzi Badoyan, joined by attorneys Lusine Martirosyan and Varduhi Elbakyan, publicly exposed the failures.

Two alleged perpetrators were placed in pre-trial detention for two months on Thursday.