Two men have been arrested in Armenia on suspicion of opening fire on supporters of Samvel Babayan, Nagorno-Karabakh’s former military leader.
An Armenian police statement released on Friday said police and National Security Service (NSS) officers identified, tracked down and detained the suspects, Alexey Balayan and Roland Aydinian, in Yerevan in a joint operation conducted on Thursday.
The statement added that the shooting incident, which reportedly occurred on a highway in Armenia’s eastern Gegharkunik province on Wednesday, resulted from a personal dispute between two groups of men. It did not elaborate.
Babayan’s office alleged on Thursday political motives behind the gunfire, which apparently did not wound anyone. It said the retired Karabakh general’s supporters were attacked by “gangs” controlled by Arayik Harutiunian, Karabakh’s former prime minister and one of the main candidates in a presidential election that will be held in the Armenian-populated territory next year. Babayan is also seeking to run in that ballot.
Harutiunian again flatly denied any involvement in the shooting when he spoke to RFE/RL’s Armenians service on Friday. “Let us respect the information provided by security services and be guided by it,” he said. “I’m sure that there were no political motives. Those guys had no issues with Samvel Babayan.”
Still, Harutiunian admitted having ties to the arrested suspects. He said one of them, Aydinian, served as mayor of a Karabakh town when he was prime minister.