Epress.am News from Armenia
Harutyun Urutyan was released from Artik penitentiary today. During the 2008 presidential elections, Urutyan was Levon Ter-Petrossian’s trusted campaigner, head of the city of Maralik’s campaign office. He was arrested on Feb. 19, 2008, and sentenced to 7 years’ imprisonment. An appeals court set the sentence at six years for the charge under RA Criminal Code Article 112 (Infliction of willful bodily damage to another) and 149 (hinderance to implementation of the right to elect, to the work of election commissions or to the implementation of the authority of person(s) participating in elections). Many oppositionists and Ter-Petrossian supporters considered him a political prisoner.
Urutyan was released on parole, having served one-third of his sentence. After being released, Urutyan reportedly said he was coming to Yerevan to participate in today’s Armenian National Congress rally currently underway outside the Matenadara (Mashtots Institute of Ancient Manuscripts).