Catholicos Karekin II’s brother, nephew arrested for alleged campaign obstruction in Vagharshapat
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The brother and nephew of Karekin II, the Catholicos of the Armenian Apostolic Church, have been arrested on charges of obstructing an election campaign.
Gevorg Nersisyan and his son, Hambardzum Nersisyan, are facing an indictment under Article 211 of the Criminal Code: “Forcing someone to engage in campaigning or to refrain from engaging in campaigning, or otherwise obstructing them from carrying out campaigning,” the Investigative Committee said in a press release.
Lawyer Ara Zohrabyan said that investigators have filed a motion with the court to place the two in pre-trial detention without bail.
The reports come amid an election campaign in Vagharshapat, colloquially known as Etchmiatsin, ahead of the city council election on November 16.
Harutyun Mkrtchyan, a candidate for the local city council running with the Republic (Hanrapetutyun) party, accused Nersisyan and his son of obstructing the campaign on November 1.
Zohrabyan argued that the alleged actions of the two men do not constitute a crime.
“This is how it happened: On November 1, around 2:40 p.m., Hambardzum was standing in front of his house gate when a man approached him and invited him to attend the Republic party’s meeting at 4:00 p.m. Hambardzum refused, and the man tried to persuade him. They spoke for a while, after which Hambardzum’s father, Gevorg Nersisyan, joined them. The three spoke together and then parted peacefully,” Zohrabyan claimed.