Top law enforcement official denies political bias in ex-president’s arrest
The head of the Special Investigative Service has dismissed any political context the former president’s arrest, reaffirming the law enforcement authorities’ respect for the right to presumption of innocence in the criminal case.
In an interview with the Armenian service of RFE/RL (Azatutyun), Sasun Khachatryan denied the allegations voiced by Robert Kocharyan’s attorneys at a Saturday debate, describing their statements as just "personal opinions". “I cannot comment upon their opinions. I haven’t breached the right to presumption of innocence. They are just lawyers who are entitled to express their opinions. So their statements that I exert pressure upon the court are simply ridiculous. Influence upon judges, if any at all, can be exercised only by the official responsible for appointing them. And he [i.e. – Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan] has stated that the Special Investigative Service is an apolitical body,” he said.
Khachatryan, who was interviewed by the Public TV Channel on Saturday, said Kocharyan will remain in custody for the assigned period of two months. He also unveiled details of the strictly confidential order issued by Mikael Harutyunyan, a former minister of defense.
But Khachatryan refrained from giving further information, saying only that the criminal trial will be an open-door process to ensure publicity and public confidence.
Khachatryan also highlighted certain controversial provisions and wordings in Order No. 0038. “What matters more importantly is that the order was signed on February 23 [2008], i.e. – a period when there were virtually no specific data that there could be any turmoil on March 1. So we do not understand why the army should have been involved in those processes,” he added.
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