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Today the RA Court of Criminal Appeals, presided by Judge Eva Darbinyan,  left the verdict made over the “Mataghis” case by the Shirak Region Court of Common Jurisdiction on December 18, 2012 in legal force. Thereby, the RA Court of Criminal Appeals rejected the appeals of the accusing party and victim Roman Yeghiazaryan’s successor Gohar Melkonyan versus the acquittal verdict.

Through the verdict made by the Shirak Region Court of Common Jurisdiction, defendants Razmik Sargsyan, Musa Serobyan and Arayik Zalyan were declared innocent and were acquitted because their participation in the committed crime wasn’t proven.

The defendants were charged with the features of point 1, 6, 14 of part 2 of Article 112 of the RA Criminal Code, which implied infliction of willful bodily damage in relation to 2 or more persons, causing by negligence the death of victims Roman Yeghiazaryan and Hovsep Mkrtumyan, fellow servicemen of the defendants.

In the Court of Appeals the defendants declared they hadn’t changed their disposition as they were innocent and made an objection to the filed appeals by requesting the Court to decline them. The accusing party declared in the previous court hearing that the Court of First Instance had subjectively assessed the proofs and had reached an obviously unfair verdict.

In their appeals the accusing party and the victim’s successor Gohar Melkonyan put the main stress on the confession testimony provided by Razmik Sargsyan during the preliminary investigation, which, according to them, fully proved the defendants’ guilt.

According to them, the statements of responding party that those testimonies were given under the influence of moral, psychological and physical pressures were not confirmed.

The accusing party had motioned to quash the verdict and to reach an accusation verdict by sentencing Razmik Sargsyan to a 7-year imprisonment, while, Arayik Zalyan and Musa Serobyan to an 8-year of incarceration, respectively. The victim’s successor Gohar Melkonyan   declared that the 3 persons, who were granted with acquittal by the Court, were guilty in the death of her son also relying on the aforementioned confession testimony of R. Sargsyan, therefore, they should again be placed behind the bars.

Movses Mkrtumyan, successor of Hovsep Mkrtumyan, the other aggrieved party over the case, also made objections to the appeals. According to latter, the true perpetrators have been enjoying liberty for already 9 years and Razmik Sargsyan, Musa Serobyan and Arayik Zalyan are innocent.

In his objection over the appeals, Hayk Alumyan, Defense Attorney of the defendants, declared that apart from the testimony referred by the accusing party, there is also another confession testimony given by witness Arman Grigoryan, who noted other perpetrators and motives over the victims’ death in his testimony. According to the Defense Attorney, the aforementioned so-called confession testimony provided by R. Sargsyan was given under the influence of harsh interrogation measures exerted against him. The circumstances mentioned in the testimony didn’t emanate from the proofs obtained over the case.

Hayk Alumyan, their Defense Attorney presented a photo to the court which had been taken prior to the videotaped “confession” testimony provided during the preliminary investigation   by Razmik Sargsyan. The photo testified that during interrogation R. Sargsyan’s face wasn’t “chubby” but it was swollen “to a degree beyond recognition”.

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