Proceedings in the criminal case involving the Azerbaijani serviceman will take place in Armenia, says PM

All legal procedures in the criminal case initiated against the Azerbaijani serviceman who illegally crossed Armenia’s border will take place in the Republic of Armenia, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has said.

“He will serve his sentence here, yes,” Pashinyan said in an interview with Infocom, when asked whether the Azerbaijani serviceman who crossed into Armenia and subsequently shot and wounded an Armenian woman will serve his sentence in Armenia.

“He will remain in Armenia for at least some time; he is currently in pre-trial detention. He committed a crime and will be convicted, but he also committed a crime in his country; under their law, he is a deserter. A criminal case has also been initiated in Azerbaijan, but the procedures under our criminal case will take place in the Republic of Armenia. He will be convicted; the legal process is separate. He may be sentenced to x years in prison and remain in the Republic of Armenia,” Pashinyan said.

Pashinyan also addressed the question of whether the Azerbaijani soldier could be exchanged for Armenian prisoners held in Baku. “These are different issues, because there have been such situations in the past as well. We have an agreement that the processes of servicemen crossing and returning will be considered separately from all cases,” the Prime Minister said.

Armenia’s National Security Service said last Thursday that it had been notified by Azerbaijani authorities earlier, on September 29, that an Azerbaijani serviceman had allegedly gone AWOL and was missing. The Azerbaijani side did not rule out that he could have crossed into Armenia. Armenia and Azerbaijan conducted a search operation. Later, on October 1, Armenian emergency services received a report that an Armenian citizen, a 39-year-old woman, had been shot in the leg at her home in the Shaki settlement in Syunik Province. Authorities determined that the Azerbaijani serviceman was the shooter, and he was apprehended shortly afterward in Shaki and detained.

Meanwhile, health authorities said earlier last week that the woman was in stable, non-life-threatening condition and was receiving the required treatment. She was transferred to Yerevan after being initially hospitalized in Sisian. The Sisian Medical Center reported that the injured Armenian citizen’s children, who were with their mother during the incident, aged 15 and 12, had sought medical assistance for bodily injuries. The 12-year-old child had a soft-tissue contusion, while the 15-year-old child had a fracture of the right wrist. Health authorities said Friday that the children are in satisfactory condition.

The Azerbaijani serviceman faces charges of illegally crossing Armenia’s state border, smuggling military-use products, firearms and ammunition, illegally trafficking in firearms and ammunition, illegally entering another person’s residence against their will, and causing grievous bodily harm under aggravating circumstances, including with a firearm.