Tashir Pizza director arrested for large-scale tax evasion

PanARMENIAN.Net - Vaghinak Ghazaryan, director of the Tashir Pizza chain, has been detained for one month. The court made the decision late at night.

The Investigative Committee reported that Ghazaryan is subject to public criminal prosecution under Article 290, Part 3, Clauses 1 and 2 of the Criminal Code of Armenia — for large-scale evasion of taxes, duties, or other payments committed by a group with prior agreement.

Earlier, the operation of 12 out of 32 locations belonging to the chain had been suspended, though many have since resumed.

The investigation coincides with the arrest of Tashir Group owner Samvel Karapetyan on June 18, who is charged with publicly inciting the seizure of power. The day before his arrest, Karapetyan had made statements defending the Armenian Apostolic Church and criticizing the authorities.

Against this backdrop, the government has begun the process of nationalizing the Electric Networks of Armenia, owned by Karapetyan. Searches have been conducted at the offices of the Electric Networks and the Tashir Group, resulting in arrests and detentions.