Epress.am News from Armenia
Judge Mnatsakan Martirosyan at the Court of General Jurisdiction of Kentron and Nork-Marash Administrative Districts of Yerevan today sentenced businessman Ara Karapetyan to 15 years of imprisonment — the length of time prosecutor Hovsep Sargsyan had asked for.
Recall, Ara Karapetyan is one of ten people accused of breaking into the home of and assaulting former chair of the RA State Customs Committee Armen Avetisyan on Oct. 27, 2008.
On Feb. 7 this year, Karapetyan’s friends and family, who say the accusation is unfounded and demand a fair trial, were protesting outside the president’s residence in Yerevan. They held placards with inscriptions such as “Freedom to Ara Karapetyan,” “Don’t convict without evidence,” and “We trust the president.”
That day, Karapetyan’s sister Dzovinar, speaking to Epress.am, had said that she “won’t permit herself” to say what are the implication of the charges against her brother and keeping him in a National Security Service cell for two eyars, but in her opinion, there was no political subtext.
Dzovinar had also said she would like to deliver her brother’s letter to Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan.
After the ruling was issued today, Karapetyan’s supporters sent a letter to news outlets, informing the press of the court ruling, as well as noting that “judging from the fact that the key actor in the March 1 [2008] trials and one of those well-known people who carry out orders was the judge, Matso [Judge Mnatsakan Maritorsyan], and the second key actor was the prosecutor, Hovsep Sargsyan, then it can be clearly seen that this is simply the second series of the Mar. 1 orders.”