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While Edmon Marukyan asserts that Human Rights Activist, Artur Sakunts, did not slander the Lernapat Village Mayor, the latter claims the opposite.

The Lori Region Court of Common Jurisdiction, presided over by Judge Borik Grigoryan, is hearing the trial of Lernapat Village Mayor Vano Yeghiazaryan’s claim against Artur Sakunts, Head of “Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor” NGO. The Lernapat Village Mayor accuses Artur Sakunts, Head of HCA-Vanadzor for causing damage to his honor, dignity and business reputation.

Speaking on corruption, Artur Sakunts, Head of HCA Vanadzor, related in an interview with “Vanadzorian Khchankar” Weekly on December 8, 2010, that “Red flags of corruption crimes aren’t tried on an equal basis, “red flags” regarding a number of activities initiated by the Lernapat Village Mayor such as wasting local budget allocations and making a decision to free his family and himself from property taxes”. The Lernapat Village Mayor considered those statements as slander by claiming he did not waste the community budget and moreover, he was not legally entitled to free himself and his family from property taxes. “It is the community Avagani that makes the decision to exempt individuals from property taxes. Especially, in cases of my relatives, I abstain from making decisions, I try not to intervene”, explained Vano Yeghiazaryan to the court. The Lernapat Village Mayor also denies accusations over allocating monetary benefits to his relatives by explaining that the issue was being regulated by the decisions of the community Avagani.  “I have not provided monetary support to anyone, the applications of my relatives and parents, like those of all RA citizens over monetary benefits, are approved by the community Avagani decisions”, explains the community head.

The Lernapat Village Mayor claims that the court should mandate Artur Sakunts to publicly admit his guilt and admit to the slandering accusations in the same newspaper, as well as pay a fine of 2.000.000 AMD and all court costs in compensation. However, the representative of the responding party, advocate Edmon Marukyan does not see slander in the statements made by the Head of the Human Rights Organization, HCA-Vanadzor. According to the statements made by Artur Sakunts, he only criticized the inactivity of the preliminary investigation body, enrolled within the framework of the criminal case filed against Vano Yeghiazaryan.  “I do not see a problem connected with prestige and dignity. Sakunts has raised the issue of an inappropriate investigation conducted by the preliminary investigation body but he did not slander the community head”, says the advocate. According to the advocate,HCAV has been receiving complaints from the Lernapat community residents that Vano Yeghizaryan exerted pressure on the eyewitnesses who were registered in the criminal case by making changes to their testimonies or by giving new ones in order to close the trial of the case initiated against him. The head of HCA-Vanadzor has been consistently addressing the issue of substituting the selected measure of restraint with detention, taking into account that by staying in authority, the community head is violating the provisions of Article 135 of the RA Criminal Code on “Impeding the trial of the case in the court or in pre-trial proceedings and by exerting unlawful influence upon the participants of criminal proceedings”.

A criminal case was filed against the Lori Region Lernapat Village Mayor Vano Yeghiazaryan at the Lori Region Department of the RA Police. The community head is accused of official fraud, exceeding his official authorizations, and embezzlement. An undertaking not to leave his place of residence was selected as a measure of restraint.

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