The person accused of providing false testimony against the police officers has been acquainted
17:24, July 20, 2018 | News, Own news
On July 18, 2018, the Court of General Jurisdiction of Yerevan presided by Judge Artur Mkrtchyan acquitted Arman Hovsepyan, who was acused of providing false testimony against the police officers.
Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor advocate Arayik Zalyan represented Arman Hovsepyan’s interests before the Court.
On April 19, 2017, A. Hovsepyan submitted a crime report on the officers of the Department for Criminal Investigation of the Dilijan Division of the RA Police subjecting him to beating. In the report, he stated that the police officers used violence against him in October 2016, when they had come to their house on the basis of the alert received from his former wife.
Thus, he accused the police officers of committing a grave crime under Article 309 § 2 of the RA Criminal Code, i.e. exceeding official authorities committed with violence.
Later, on June 19, 2017, the criminal case initiated against the police officers was terminated on the ground of absence of crime.
A charge was brought against Arman Hovsepyan for false crime reporting under Article 333 of the RA Criminal Code.
For false crime reporting, Prosecuting Attorney A. Shahbazyan requested the Court to sentence A. Hovsepyan to one year of imprisonment.
HCA Vanadzor advocate Arayik Zalyan, A. Hovsepyan’s defender, highlighted in his defense speech that there was no intent in A. Hovsepyan’s actions, and, to accuse him of false crime reporting, it was necessary to establish that he committed that action, realizing that the information he provided was false. In the case of an allegation of a crime, regardless of the allegation being grounded or not, there are no elements of crime.
A. Zalyan referred to a number of precedential decisions rendered by the RA Court of Cassation to support the arguments that he voiced.
There are none of the above-mentioned circumstances in the charge brought against A. Hovsepyan; there is no evidence of him providing false information intentionally. He presented his perception of the active actions of the police officers. It is noteworthy that his feeling pain and getting injured due to the police using physical force.
Concluding his standpoint, A. Zalyan stated that the above-mentioned circumstances are sufficient to pass a verdict of A. Hovsepyan’s acquittal.
A little later, the Court of General Jurisdiction of Yerevan presided by Judge Artur Mkrtchyan delivered a verdict of acquittal.