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As already reported, on December 10, 2015, HCA Vanadzor filed a crime report to the RA SIS on falsified outcomes of the constitutional referendum of December 6, 2015 and particularly a substantial doubt of ballot stuffing at the polling stations with a voter turnout totaling 50-100%.

The RA SIS failed both to decide on the crime report within the adequate terms as prescribed by the RA Criminal Procedure Code and to send the decision to the legal person who submitted the report. Afterwards, on December 28, 2015, the Organization filed an application with the RA Prosecutor General’s Office requiring that the latter obliged the investigative agency to submit its decision on the crime report above.

The response note by the RA SIS submitted no sooner than a month after the crime report reads that no decision of criminal procedure nature was taken on the report since it contained only “baseless allegations”, rather than any information on any crime committed or prepared. Whereas, the suspicions in the crime report by HCA Vanadzor were based on the findings of its survey on the voter turnout at the referendum clearly showing that the number of voters were directly proportional to “yes” votes at the polling stations (relevant section of the survey above was also attached to the crime report). In fact, the RA Special Investigation Service considered the suspicions in the crime report as baseless assumptions, without carrying out due investigation and providing any evidence.

It should be noted that the RA Special Investigation Service showed inaction; the RA SIS failed to admit the crime report as such, take the necessary investigative and procedural actions and make a decision under Article 181 of the Criminal Procedure Code (Decisions made upon examination of crime reports), while the agency responsible for investigation was under obligation within 10 days to decide on the issue and send its decision to the legal person which had submitted the report.

It is especially noteworthy that due to the inaction of the RA Special Investigation Service, the Organization is deprived of it right to appeal the decision concerning its crime report, in case it disagrees with such decision.

On January 15, 2016, Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly Vanadzor applied to the General Jurisdiction Court of Arabkir and Kanaker-Zeytun administrative districts, Yerevan, RA, requiring that the latter stopped the inaction of the RA Special Investigation Service and obliged it to decide on the crime report submitted by the Organization and send the decision to the legal person who had submitted the report.