Armenia’s Investigative Committee instigated a criminal case over the disappearance of Arthur Afyan, a contract serviceman of Russian Federal Security Service’s Frontier Department in Armenia, Aysor.am reports.

The criminal case was initiated under Article 104 (murder) of the Armenian Criminal Code, according to the press service of Investigative Committee. Investigative and operational search actions are being taken to find Afyan.

Gyumri resident Alvard Mkrtchyan earlier informed the law enforcement bodies that her husband Arthur Afyan, 26, was missing since he left their home around 2:00 am on February 21.

Reports about the soldier’s disappearance appeared in the local media on February 23. Prior to his disappearance Afyan told his wife that ‘he had run into debt’.

Earlier, the spokesman of the Russian Southern Military District Colonel Igor Gorbul said that reports about the disappearance of soldier Artur Afyan from the 102nd Russian military base in Gyumri (Armenia) were false. The official added that the soldier was serving at the base, TASS reports.