Vartan Oskanian has received notification to appear to NSS

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 6, ARMENPRESS: Vartan Oskanian, PAP party member in National Assembly, the founder of “Sivilitas” fundation, has received a notification to appear to NSS on October 8 as a defendant. Armenpress was informed from the “Sivilitas” fund. According to the note made in Facebook page of Vartan Oskanian it was mainly highlighted in the notification that according to the 153 article of Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Armenia, in case of failure to appear in court, the suspect, the accused as well as the witness and the injured, upon availability of a substantiated order of the inquiry body, investigator, prosecutor, judge or the court, shall be forcibly brought to court. The suspect, accused as well as the witness and the injured shall inform the body which has sent them a subpoena about substantiated reasons not to appear in court in the designated time period.

Armenia’s National Assembly removed Vartan Oskanian’s parliamentary immunity on October 2, 2012. This was done at the request of the Prosecutor General and he is expected to follow with criminal charges of expropriation and money laundering against the former Foreign Minister and member of the Prosperous Armenia Party. The Prosecutor insists that the government is "protecting the rights of the Civilitas Foundation" from Vartan Oskanian, its founder and Salpi Ghazarian, its director. Mrs. Ghazarian and Tigran Karapetian, a Civilitas Board member and the intermediary in the gift transaction, may also be charged.The offenses carry a four to 20 year prison sentence.