Armenian businesswoman Silva Hambardzumian claims that in 2008 she gave a $14 million bribe to the then environment minister and current lawmaker Aram Harutiunian to obtain a mine development license.
“I transferred $8 million to a bank account in Dubai that he mentioned to me and paid another $6 million by installments through a person whose name was Suren Avagian,” Hambardzumian told RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am).
“I had contacts with Aram Harutiunian since 2007 and bought three organizations from him. Then, when I mentioned my intention to buy several mines, I was told that others had offered bribes for that. I asked to quote the amount I should pay and he said it was $14 million. He gave the bank account number of another person named Araks Dilanian and on February 2, 2008 I transferred that money,” the entrepreneur claimed.
Hambardzumian said that she received a license after allegedly giving the bribe, but soon afterwards that license was suspended. She said she demanded that Harutiunian return the money and he promised to provide real estate instead, but eventually did not keep his promise. “He told me I could do anything, but would get nothing. After that meeting I went straight to the 6th police department [combating organized crime] and reported the crime,” she said.
Hambardzumian claimed that Araks Dilanian, to whom she paid the money by installments, transferred it to the Dubai bank accounts of three Armenian citizens. “One of those citizens is Gagik Karapetian, the director of the Sevan Psychiatric Hospital, another is his worker Viktor Martirosian, and I didn’t know the third one. After I received those papers it turned out that the third person was Armen Khachatrian, who is the director of property owned by Aram Harutiunian.”
The director of the Sevan Psychiatric Hospital, however, denied that he was involved in the case. “I don’t know such a person. Please do not call me over that matter, do not disturb me,” he told RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am).
Attempts by RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) to contact MP Aram Harutiunian were not successful throughout the day.
The lawmaker affiliated with the former ruling Republican Part of Armenia did not even attend the National Assembly session today.
Last week acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian stated from the parliament tribune that one of the MPs was suspected of taking bribes. He did not give the name of the suspect, but local media began to circulate the name of former environment minister Harutiunian.
Pashinian also said that the law-enforcement authorities expected a document from another country’s foreign ministry.
Hambardzumian said that in order to finalize the legal case, they will soon receive official papers regarding the three citizens from Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
“Our [Special] Investigative Service wants to clarify the passport data of those people. Soon they will send it, too,” she said.
Asked whether she acknowledged that giving a bribe is also a criminal offense, Hambardzumian said that it wasn’t in 2008. “I think and have always thought that giving a bribe should be punishable, but since there was no way of dealing with the former government otherwise, since it was impossible to do any business without giving a bribe, I guess many people like me had to do so,” she said.
The Special Investigative Service has not yet confirmed whether it is investigating the case.