In Armenia, more than 100 cases of confiscation of illegally acquired property totaling over $1.3 billion are currently under consideration, announced the Prosecutor General of Armenia, Anna Vardapetyan.
"This amount may increase as there is property whose value has not yet been calculated, and the participation in legal entities has not yet been assessed," she said in an interview with Armenian Public Television, as reported by the ARKA news agency.
Vardapetyan explained that these cases involve individuals accused of corruption crimes, whose cases have been transferred for consideration to the Department for the Confiscation of Illegally Acquired Property, as well as investigations based on information obtained from law enforcement agencies.
The Prosecutor General stated that these cases also involve active corrupt officials, but the law prohibits the disclosure of information on cases under investigation.
Responding to a question about the protracted legal process regarding former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan and individuals associated with him, Vardapetyan explained that the Anti-Corruption Court was finally formed only last year when the system was ready to investigate such cases.
"For this reason, the process has only recently begun. The application regarding Kocharyan and affiliated persons was submitted to the court on October 9, 2023. Before that, it was necessary to prepare all the institutional foundations," she added.
The prosecution demands the confiscation from Kocharyan of 25 units of real estate, 5 vehicles, shares in 16 Armenian and foreign legal entities, securities worth over $4 million, the right to demand loans amounting to about 10 billion drams, and over 35 billion drams.
According to Vardapetyan, the prosecution insists that this property and funds cannot be justified by lawful income.
