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On June 3, 2015, Ani Boshyan’s representatives, Artur Sakunts and Arayik Zalyan, appealed to the First Instance Court of General Jurisdiction of the RA Arabkir and Kanaker-Zeytun administrative districts to annul the decree not to initiate criminal prosecution against the police officers and to discontinue criminal proceedings.

Ani Boshyan and her father Hakob Boshyan suffered illegal actions of the RA Police Vanadzor city Taron Department officers. The police officers illegally deprived Ani Boshyan of liberty, exerted psychological pressure, humiliated her dignity, persuaded her to testify and coerced testimonies, and as a result, Ani Boshyan made a suicide attempt. The police officers also swore at Ani Boshyan’s father, threatened to beat him and illegally kept him at the police.

On November 26, 2014, the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly Vanadzor submitted a crime report to the RA Special Investigation Service (SIS) on the fact of violation of Ani Boshyan’s and her father Hakob Boshyan’s rights. While on December 12, 2014, criminal proceedings were initiated on the case of Ani Boshyan, after improper preliminary investigation, the RA SIS decided not to start criminal prosecution against the police and investigating department officers on exceeding their official powers, causing severe consequences and declining to testify for absence of corpus delicti in their actions and to discontinue the proceedings. With the testimonies of both the police officers and the Boshyans at its disposal under this case, the SIS for unknown reasons considered the testimonies of the police officers well-grounded and those of the Boshyans groundless. Failing to conduct a complete preliminary investigation, the SIS decided that the only evidence in support of the allegations that the police and investigative department officers exerted psychological pressure on Ani Boshyan, humiliated her dignity, persuaded her to testify and coerced testimonies are the testimonies of Ani Boshyan in her capacity of the person concerned. Meanwhile, at the preliminary investigation stage of the case, the investigating agency failed to schedule relevant psychological and psychiatric expert examinations to determine whether Ani Boshyan actually suffered fear, anxiety or a sense of inferiority.

As a result, by analyzing and assessing other factual data in its wrong belief, the SIS noted that the investigation revealed no well-grounded facts on the account that the police and investigative department officers had exceeded their official powers sufficient to initiate criminal proceedings.

The SIS failed to note the fact that Ani Boshyan was apprehended to the police station at 6 pm, on November 11, 2014 and released only at 3 am. Meanwhile, the law does not allow for carrying out investigatory actions at night hours, except for urgent necessity. And the SIS also failed to consider the issue of such a necessity in this case. Also, the fact that Ani Boshyan was apprehended to the police station on November 18, 2015 at 6 pm and questioned until 11:30 pm is also unlawful, since the law provides for at most 4 hours for questioning. As for the unlawfully keeping Hakob Boshyan at the police, the SIS also considered it groundless referring to the testimonies of the police officers clearly mentioning that Hakob Boshyan stayed at the police station of his own free will, thus comparing the police station with an entertainment venue, where people can go and stay as long as they wish.

During the preliminary investigation, the preliminary investigating agency failed to question the assistant witnesses present during the search at the Boshyan’s apartment, who might testify on details related to apprehension of Ani Boshyan. Also, at the preliminary investigation stage, the SIS failed to seize and decode the video records of the cameras at the Vanadzor city Taron Police Department that might support some points of the victims’ testimonies.

Based in these and a number of other points, Ani Boshyan’s representatives Artur Sakunts and Arayik Zalyan appealed to the RA Prosecutor General to annul the decree on not initiating criminal prosecution against the police officers and discontinuing criminal proceedings; however, the appeal was dismissed. Then, Ani Boshyan’s representatives filed another appeal with a number of the grounds above to the RA First Instance Court of General Jurisdiction of the RA Arabkir and Kanaker-Zeytun administrative districts.