Judge orders enforcement of subpoena after Kocharyan skips court hearing

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 15, ARMENPRESS. Anti-Corruption Court Judge Sargis Petrosyan ruled to enforce a subpoena of former President Robert Kocharyan and other ex-officials after they failed to make an appearance in court on Friday in the case pertaining to their actions during the deadly 2008 post-election unrest, also known as March 1 events.

Apparently the former officials will be taken into custody and brought to the courtroom. 

Ex-president Robert Kocharyan, the former chief of general staff of the military, General Yuri Khachaturov, former Defense Minister Seyran Ohanyan and the former Secretary of the Security Council Armen Gevorgyan were charged with overthrowing constitutional order in 2018. They denied the charges. The former officials were acquitted in 2021 when the Constitutional Court ruled that the accusation is unconstitutional. Prosecutors appealed against the acquittal and were allowed to press different charges related to the events of March 2008 during the final days of Kocharyan's second-term. 

Only Armen Gevorgyan made an appearance in court on November 15, and the prosecutors and defense teams started arguing whether proceedings can continue without the presence of defendants. 

The lawyers of Kocharyan, Ohanyan and Khachaturov argued that their clients are not defendants in the case because new charges haven’t been brought forward. 

Khachaturov’s lawyer Mihran Poghosyan said the court has no authority to oblige his client to make an appearance because he doesn’t have a status of defendant. 

Nevertheless, the judge ordered Kocharyan, Khachaturov and Ohanyan taken into custody and brought to the courtroom for the next session.