YEREVAN, JANUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. The Yerevan court approved the motion of the Special Investigative Service to remand former minister of nature protection Aram Harutyunyan in custody for two months, his attorney Karen Hakobyan told reporters after the court hearing, reports Armenpress.

“The court approved the motion of the Special Investigative Service to remand Aram Harutyunyan in custody for two months”, the attorney said.

Aram Harutyunyan, being a high ranking official, received bribe of particularly large amount through other people.

According to the indictment, in 2007 Aram Harutyunyan provided mining licenses and allowed to carry out mine exploitation to a businessman and received particularly large amount of bribe for that, 4.2 billion AMD or 14 million USD at that time.

In order to hide the criminal source of the money, Harutyunyan transferred the money to a Swiss bank account of an international organization and then started to transfer the money to a bank account of a person in close relations with him engaged in some business activities in Armenia.

Manhunt is declared for Aram Harutyunyan.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan