Law enforcement officials have been conducting searches since early morning at the homes of opposition 'Armenia' faction leader and second President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan and his son Levon Kocharyan.
Head of the 'Armenia' faction Anna Grigoryan said that Robert Kocharyan has been taken to the National Security Service; further details are not yet known.
The search at Levon Kocharyan's home is still ongoing at this time. Opposition faction MP Mesrop Manukyan posted a video on Facebook showing masked NSS personnel in front of Levon Kocharyan's house.
The Anti-Corruption Committee reported that searches and other procedural actions are being conducted at several dozen addresses within the framework of a criminal proceeding investigating cases of corruption-related crimes. The agency said it would provide more information later about which criminal case is involved.
This is an unprecedented event, as a former president of Armenia is being detained at his home, and it is happening within the framework of a major criminal proceeding involving searches at several dozen addresses. Although it has not yet been disclosed exactly which case is at issue, the move is clearly a new phase in the fight against corruption targeting influential figures.
The presence of masked NSS officers near Levon Kocharyan's home indicates the seriousness of the operation and raises the question of whether this is an isolated incident or the start of a larger campaign. An official statement from the Anti-Corruption Committee is expected in the coming hours to clarify the nature of the case, but for now all sides are cautious about details.
