Xyresic
03-11-2013, 06:41 PM
Former Armenian presidential hopeful charged in rival's shooting
(Reuters) - One unsuccessful Armenian presidential candidate was arrested and charged on Wednesday with the attempted assassination of another, authorities said, in an incident that marred the February 18 election in the former Soviet republic.
Opposition politician Paruyr Hayrikyan was shot in the shoulder on January 31. He declined to seek a postponement and went on to receive less than 2 percent of the votes in the election in which President Serzh Sarksyan won a second term.
The Armenian security service said it had arrested Vardan Sedrakyan who was charged with ordering the assassination of his rival. He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
"Sedrakyan does not consider himself guilty, refuses to give any testimonies and intends to appeal the charges in the court," Sedrakyan's lawyer, Alexander Sirunyan, told website News.am. His client won less than 1 percent of votes in the election.
The shooting added to concerns over stability in the South Caucasus region, a key transit route for Caspian energy resources to Europe, where Armenia and its neighbor Azerbaijan are locked in a territorial dispute.
Supporters of Sarksyan's closest challenger in the race, opposition leader Raffi Hovannisian, have staged several peaceful protests in Yerevan since the vote, which they say was rigged.
His Heritage Party has asked the Constitutional Court to the throw out the official result and name Hovannisian the winner. Armenia's election commission has said there were no violations that could have affected results.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/06/us-armenia-election-shooting-idUSBRE92512U20130306
Armenian Politician Arrested Over Shooting of Presidential Rival
An Armenian politician was arrested on suspicion of ordering the shooting of a fellow contender in last month’s presidential elections.
Vardan Sedrakyan, 46, an authority on Armenian epic poetry who garnered 0.4 percent in the vote, was detained late yesterday in the capital, Yerevan, in connection with the Jan. 31 attack on Paruyr Hayrikyan, 63, National Security Service spokesman Artsvin Baghramyan said today by phone. Sedrakyan will be held in pre-trial custody for two months while an investigation continues into the case, he said.
Sedrakyan’s lawyer, Aleksandr Sirunyan, didn’t respond to calls to his mobile and office phone numbers. His client denies the accusations, Sirunyan told the Panorama.am news website.
Sedrakyan was one of eight candidates running for the presidency on Feb. 18, the sixth time the former Soviet republic elected a leader since independence in 1991. President Serzh Sargsyan won 59 percent of the vote, beating his chief rival Raffi Hovhannisyan by more than 20 percentage points, according to official results.
Thousands of Armenians have joined the runner-up’s call to challenge the vote tally as opposition groups seek to gain traction against Sargsyan’s rule. The president is set to be inaugurated for his second term April 9.
Two men suspected of involvement in the shooting were arrested by the state security agency on Feb. 7. Both were previously hired by Sedrakyan to perform repairs on his house. After their detention, Sedrakyan told reporters he faced a probable arrest after Feb. 25, when international election observers were scheduled to leave the country.
Hayrikyan, who is still hospitalized and recovering from injuries sustained in the shooting, declined to comment on the arrest through his assistant, Vrezh Zatikyan.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-03-06/armenian-politician-arrested-over-shooting-of-presidential-rival.html
3003130032
(Reuters) - One unsuccessful Armenian presidential candidate was arrested and charged on Wednesday with the attempted assassination of another, authorities said, in an incident that marred the February 18 election in the former Soviet republic.
Opposition politician Paruyr Hayrikyan was shot in the shoulder on January 31. He declined to seek a postponement and went on to receive less than 2 percent of the votes in the election in which President Serzh Sarksyan won a second term.
The Armenian security service said it had arrested Vardan Sedrakyan who was charged with ordering the assassination of his rival. He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
"Sedrakyan does not consider himself guilty, refuses to give any testimonies and intends to appeal the charges in the court," Sedrakyan's lawyer, Alexander Sirunyan, told website News.am. His client won less than 1 percent of votes in the election.
The shooting added to concerns over stability in the South Caucasus region, a key transit route for Caspian energy resources to Europe, where Armenia and its neighbor Azerbaijan are locked in a territorial dispute.
Supporters of Sarksyan's closest challenger in the race, opposition leader Raffi Hovannisian, have staged several peaceful protests in Yerevan since the vote, which they say was rigged.
His Heritage Party has asked the Constitutional Court to the throw out the official result and name Hovannisian the winner. Armenia's election commission has said there were no violations that could have affected results.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/03/06/us-armenia-election-shooting-idUSBRE92512U20130306
Armenian Politician Arrested Over Shooting of Presidential Rival
An Armenian politician was arrested on suspicion of ordering the shooting of a fellow contender in last month’s presidential elections.
Vardan Sedrakyan, 46, an authority on Armenian epic poetry who garnered 0.4 percent in the vote, was detained late yesterday in the capital, Yerevan, in connection with the Jan. 31 attack on Paruyr Hayrikyan, 63, National Security Service spokesman Artsvin Baghramyan said today by phone. Sedrakyan will be held in pre-trial custody for two months while an investigation continues into the case, he said.
Sedrakyan’s lawyer, Aleksandr Sirunyan, didn’t respond to calls to his mobile and office phone numbers. His client denies the accusations, Sirunyan told the Panorama.am news website.
Sedrakyan was one of eight candidates running for the presidency on Feb. 18, the sixth time the former Soviet republic elected a leader since independence in 1991. President Serzh Sargsyan won 59 percent of the vote, beating his chief rival Raffi Hovhannisyan by more than 20 percentage points, according to official results.
Thousands of Armenians have joined the runner-up’s call to challenge the vote tally as opposition groups seek to gain traction against Sargsyan’s rule. The president is set to be inaugurated for his second term April 9.
Two men suspected of involvement in the shooting were arrested by the state security agency on Feb. 7. Both were previously hired by Sedrakyan to perform repairs on his house. After their detention, Sedrakyan told reporters he faced a probable arrest after Feb. 25, when international election observers were scheduled to leave the country.
Hayrikyan, who is still hospitalized and recovering from injuries sustained in the shooting, declined to comment on the arrest through his assistant, Vrezh Zatikyan.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-03-06/armenian-politician-arrested-over-shooting-of-presidential-rival.html
3003130032