The Reason Behind the Arrest of “Imnemnimi” Show Authors is Revealed
Criminal proceedings have been initiated against Narek Samsonyan and Vazgen Saghatelyan, co-authors of the “Imnemnimi” show, in response to their comments addressed to the Speaker of the RA National Assembly, Alen Simonyan. Attorney Ruben Melikyan announced this during a live broadcast. According to preliminary information, the reason for initiating the proceedings is one of Vazgen Saghatelyan’s Facebook posts, in which offensive expressions were directed at NA Speaker Alen Simonyan and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. Subsequently, Samsonyan and Saghatelyan continued the topic within the framework of their podcast. The attorney recalled that on November 7, Samsonyan interviewed the third President of the Republic of Armenia, Serzh Sargsyan, after which, on November 9, Alen Simonyan called them “sons of bitches” (or “dog’s sons”).
“In the November 10 broadcast, Vazgen and Narek reacted harshly to that expression, but they did not curse. Where is the hooliganism here? Calling people ‘sons of bitches’ is not hooliganism, but reacting is hooliganism?” he said.
Melikyan also reported that searches are being conducted at the “Antifake” office and all equipment is being confiscated.
We had previously reported that masked individuals conducted searches at the homes of Samsonyan and Saghatelyan early in the morning. According to the attorney, the search at Samsonyan’s home lasted about 1.5 hours, after which he was transferred to the investigative body in handcuffs. Vazgen Saghatelyan, the co-author of the show, was also arrested. Searches were also conducted at his home.
“There are 3 and 5-year-old children at home. Masked individuals broke into the house at 7 a.m., started a search, and then took Narek away harshly. Handcuffs were used only for the purpose of intimidation. The article, hooliganism, is related to the November 10 broadcast,” Melikyan said.
Upon his arrest, Narek Samsonyan stated that the article charged against him is Article 297, Part 2, Clause 3 of the RA Criminal Code: “Hooliganism committed using information or communication technologies.”
It should be noted that they had also appeared “in the spotlight” of law enforcement in 2024, again under the same charge. They were detained for two months.