YEREVAN, OCTOBER 17, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has personally attended the funeral of Tigran Arakelyan, the Yerevan police officer who was gunned down in the line of duty.

The PM expressed condolences to Arakelyan’s family and paid tribute to the officer’s memory.

Interim Police Chief Arman Sargsyan, Prosecutor General Artur Davtyan, Special Investigatory Service Chief Sasun Khachatryan, Mayor of Yerevan Hayk Marutyan and other government officials were in attendance.

Arakelyan and his partner were patrolling the city when around 04:30 October 16 they saw two young men who ran away upon seeing the police cruiser. The officers eventually apprehended the suspects in the Azatutyun Avenue, but the latter resisted arrest and one of them got hold of the officer’s firearm and fired on Tigran Arakelyan. Arakelyan succumbed to his injuries. His partner was battered by the suspects but survived.

The two suspects were later apprehended. Police said the suspects had earlier committed a robbery.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan