Epress.am News from Armenia
Arsen Grigoryan, a 28-year-old prisoner who died on April 6 in the Artik penitentiary, did not have any serious health conditions, his uncle, Samvel Grigoryan, told Epress.am on Monday. He added that according to preliminary information, his nephew died of asphyxiation in still unknown circumstances.
“Four days ago we took him to a hospital in Gyumri; his parents paid 40 thousand drams to have his stomach checked. He was diagnosed with some form of erosive gastritis, but overall he was fine,” Grigoryan said, stressing that the stomach issues were not the cause of Arsen’s death.
The interviewee was present for his nephew’s autopsy and, according to him, there were no signs of violence on Arsen’s body: “We do not know anything; we are all in shock. We have been busy with the funeral so we do not know whether a criminal case has been initiated.”
When contacted by Epress.am for a comment, a spokesperson for the Criminal Investigation Department said a case has not been opened yet since “we are still gathering materials; a forensic examination has been scheduled.”
Note, Armlur.am earlier reported that Grigoryan’s health suddenly deteriorated sharply one day before he died, but officials told him he had to pay AMD 400 000 to be transferred to hospital. According to various sources, the website added, “Grigoryan took a lot of pills [on April 5], after which his condition only worsened.”