Former Defense Minister Vigen Sargsyan Accused of Money Laundering
The assets of former Defense Minister Vigen Sargsyan, including a $2.05 million house in Belmont, USA, and 4 properties on Abovyan Street and Northern Avenue, have been seized. Sargsyan is accused of laundering 100 million AMD. This information comes from the Prosecutor General’s Office. According to the provided data, in 2013, the combined legal income of Vigen Sargsyan and his wife, Lusine Galajyan, amounted to 600,000 AMD. The charges state that Vigen Sargsyan purchased real estate from Samvel Mayrapetyan at prices below market value and later resold them, concealing the illegal acquisition of 100 million AMD. In other words, the “transactions” were allegedly fictitious.
On May 15, the Anti-Corruption Court accepted a lawsuit filed by the Anti-Corruption Committee regarding the confiscation of property of apparent illegal origin. The claim seeks to confiscate from Vigen Sargsyan and his affiliated individuals one property located in central Yerevan or, if this is not possible, its average market value of approximately 181 million AMD, as well as a residential property in Massachusetts, USA, or its acquisition cost of $2.05 million, equivalent to 940,909,000 AMD, among other assets.
Vigen Sargsyan left Armenia in 2019. And now he is internationally wanted. Samvel Mayrapetyan is also a defendant in this case, but due to the lack of information on his whereabouts, the criminal proceedings against him have been suspended.