Armenia Holds Ex-President Kocharyan and Son on Corruption Allegations

Former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan and his eldest son were taken into custody on Tuesday following coordinated searches at dozens of properties connected to the family, according to the country’s Anti-Corruption Committee.

Armenia’s Prosecutor General’s Office announced that criminal proceedings have been launched against the 71-year-old former leader on charges including abuse of authority, bribery, and large-scale money laundering. Four additional individuals, beyond Kocharyan and his son Sedrak, were also detained as part of the investigation.

The Anti-Corruption Committee stated that the probe centers on allegations that state assets were sold to private companies at below-market rates during Kocharyan’s presidency, which spanned from 1998 to 2008. The investigation involves ten individuals in total.

Former President Serzh Sargsyan, who served as Kocharyan’s prime minister from 2007 to 2008 before assuming the presidency himself from 2008 to 2018, is also facing charges of abuse of power or official authority in connection with the case, according to the committee.

Sargsyan was summoned to the Anti-Corruption Committee headquarters in Yerevan on Tuesday.

The elder Kocharyan currently leads the Moscow-aligned Armenia Alliance, which serves as parliament’s second-largest opposition bloc.

Bagrat Mikoyan, who heads Kocharyan’s office, characterized the detentions as “yet another attack on President Kocharyan and his family” by authorities. He added that Kocharyan felt unwell following his detention and was transported to a hospital.

During his time as Armenia’s president, Kocharyan strengthened Yerevan’s relationship with Moscow, signing a declaration of “allied partnership” with the Kremlin and overseeing a substantial expansion of Russian investment in the Armenian economy.

He has maintained close personal ties with Vladimir Putin. In 2021, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed that the two had “good relations for a very long time” and were frequently in contact.

‘A signal to the Kremlin’

The raids came less than 24 hours after Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan engaged in a heated exchange in parliament with Kocharyan’s younger son, Levon, who is a member of his father’s political bloc.

During a parliamentary question-and-answer session, Levon Kocharyan accused Pashinyan of exerting pressure on the courts and law enforcement agencies to initiate investigations against specific individuals.

Pashinyan countered by questioning Levon Kocharyan about the origins of his family’s wealth, stating that any assets acquired at public expense should be returned to the state.

Robert Kocharyan previously stood trial in 2019 on accusations of ordering the illegal use of force by security officers against demonstrators protesting alleged fraud in the 2008 presidential election. The clashes resulted in at least 10 fatalities. The charges were subsequently dropped, and legal proceedings concluded in 2021.

Alexander Iskandaryan, director of the Caucasus Institute in Yerevan, noted that critics have long accused Kocharyan of corruption during his time in power.

Iskandaryan suggested that the case will deepen the rift between the pro-Russian opposition and Pashinyan’s government, which is pursuing a pro-Western agenda and prioritizing closer ties with the European Union.

“Of course, this is a signal to the Kremlin,” Iskandaryan stated. “Kocharyan effectively positions himself as a Russian proxy, and we see a trend where the authorities have begun to fight — intensively and by all possible means — against political forces aligned with Russia.”

Pashinyan, who rose to power following a 2018 street revolution, has frequently presented himself as a man of the people and advocates for stronger ties with the West. The 51-year-old’s party secured re-election in June.

The leader of the largest opposition party, Armenian-Russian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan, was arrested last year on suspicion of calling for the overthrow of Pashinyan.

Karapetyan is the founder of Russia’s Tashir Group of Companies and possesses an estimated fortune of $4.1 billion (€3.5bn) — nearly half of Armenia’s annual public budget. He accumulated his wealth primarily in Russia and holds both Russian and Cypriot citizenship.

During his criminal trial in April, Karapetyan informed the court that he had initiated the process of renouncing his Russian and Cypriot citizenships to qualify as a candidate in the June 2026 parliamentary elections. He and his legal team have denied all charges against him.

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