Who Embezzled $2.7 Million? Accused Wants Proof

The trial in the criminal case against Hayincassatsia CJSC employees Anahit Grigoryan, Satenik Sargsyan, Aghavni Khachatryan, Armine and Arman Grigoryan, and Sargis Danielyan continued in the Court of First Instance of Arabkir and Qanaqer-Zeytoun Administrative Districts of Yerevan on Monday.

Note, it’s been over a year that Anahit Grigoryan and Satenik Sargsyan have been in the Abovyan penitentiary. During one of the previous lawsuits, the representatives of the accused motioned to change the precautionary measure since both have serious health issues; the court, however, did not sustain the motion.

Grigoryan’s attorney Varduhi Elbakyan, speaking to Epress.am Monday, said this criminal case is launched on an opinion of Armenia’s Central Bank.

“The Central Bank came to the opinion that Anahit Grigoryan embezzled around one billion drams [around $2.7 million USD] between 2003 and 2009. Let me say, that during that entire time, inspections were carried out and at no time was a breach uncovered by either the auditors or the tax inspectorate,” she said.

Only the plaintiff’s representative, Hayincassatsia CJSC lawyer Liana Mkhitaryan, was examined during Monday’s trial. The defense asked Mkhitaryan where she got the information that she gave at her pre-trial testimony that Anahit Grigoryan stole that money.

Mkitaryan said that was how it was written in the investigator’s decision. Asked whether anyone guided her while writing her testimony and who was present at the time, Mkhitaryan said accused Armen Grigoryan and an additional 4 people were present while she was writing her testimony, while the investigator showed her how to write it.

Anahit Grigoryan also directed several questions to the witness, who promised a comprehensive response at the next court hearing.

In addition, Grigoryan made a statement in court which she noted, “Absent in the investigation materials are inspection acts invoked in the work of any Central Bank working group and written findings based on expert justifications by any inspection organization, the finance ministry, the tax inspectorate, the labor inspectorate, the pension fund, the state registry and other state bodies, as well as any auditing organization regarding the veracity of the embezzlement of one billion drams. I hope that until I give my testimony in court, a written document by any substantiated inspection organization testifying to the embezzlement of one billion drams will be finally shown to me.”

At the end of the trial, Grigoryan’s attorney said that no substantiated motion put forth by the defense has been sustained by Judge Levon Avetisyan and the entire trial process is dictated from orders above.