Man Who Opened Fire in Outdoor Yerevan Market Turned Himself In to Police

Gor Arakelyan, the son-in-law of Prosperous Armenia MP Karo Karapetyan who on Saturday opened fire near the Yerevan outdoor market known as Vernissage, yesterday surrendered to police, reports News.am [AM], citing the police and adding that Arakelyan arrived at the station with a Makarov pistol. 

According to News.am, Gor Arakelyan, 29, who lives in the Progresstech-Armenia building, wanted to exit the underground parking lot with his Toyota Landcruiser, but Valeriy Hovhannisyan and Norayr Harutyunyan blocked the road with their BMW X6 for nearly half an hour, obstructing traffic.

Gor Arakelyan, in whose car was his wife (MP Karo Karapetyan's daughter) and child, asked them to give way, but Hovhannisyan and Harutyunyan refused. Arakelyan then got out of his car and an altercation ensued, as a result of which Arakelyan pulled out a gun and started shooting. Apart from Hovhannisyan and Harutyunyan, injured were also random passers-by Albina Badalyan, Myasnik Hayrapetyan, and Mnatsakan Sukiasyan. All five were taken to No. 1 University Hospital, and as of May 18 their condition was stabilized. 

News.am reports that little is known about Valeriy Hovhannisyan and Norayr Harutyunyan: what is known, however, is that they recently arrived from Russia.