Epress.am News from Armenia
The sample taken from the clothes of Karen Kungortsev (pictured), accused in the murder of15-year-old Yerevan resident David Hovakimyan, showed that the blood on his clothes did not belong to the victim, Kungortsev's representative, Helsinki Association of Human Rights attorney Arayik Papikyan told Epress.am.
"The blood sample was taken from that pocket of Karen Kungortsev's where allegedly found was the knife that killed the boy. Forensics showed that the blood sample belonged to a different blood group," he said.
The attorney mentioned that prior to getting the results from forensics, Lori District Court of First Instance Judge Suren Baghdasaryan for the fifth time granted the investigator's motion to extend Kungortsev's pre-trial detention period by another two months.
"This time, too, the investigator provided no solid evidence or proof to justify prolonging [my client’s] detention. In fact, the investigator changes only the date of the petition and though 'copy-and-paste' submits the petition once every 2 months.
"Since December 2013, the sole justification for the petition was to obtain expert opinion and that justification has remained unchanged. We appealed the court's decision once, but the Appeal [Court] rejected it. It makes no sense to appeal again. They’re the same decisions, [made] on the same basis," said Papikyan.
Recall, Karen Kungortsev does not admit he's guilty, and human rights defenders and his attorney indicate violations recorded during the preliminary investigations. While behind bars, the accused has resorted to self harm, as well as beginning a hunger strike. His mother said that her son was beaten by police while under police custody and forced to confess.