Lawyer: Sacred Struggle case political persecution over edited audio

PanARMENIAN.Net - Lawyer Varazdat Harutyunyan argued in a Facebook post that the case known as the Sacred Struggle is nothing more than a politically motivated prosecution built on edited audio.

He cited revelations by fellow lawyers Hovhannes Khudoyan and Ruben Melikyan, noting that Khudoyan had released a recording disproving the widely repeated claim—promoted by government propagandists—that there was a plan to “shoot two people and imprison 15.”

Harutyunyan presented additional evidence concerning defendant Aghvan Arshakyan, saying that not only is there no proof of his guilt, but there is clear evidence disproving his involvement. In a recorded conversation with Archbishop Bagrat, Arshakyan is heard asking what is being planned, to which the Archbishop replies, “You will know when it’s time.”

“This shows that Aghvan had no knowledge of any planned action—which, I repeat, contained nothing criminal,” Harutyunyan said. “There is no other evidence in the case to support his guilt.”

Harutyunyan emphasized that Arshakyan, a young man with severe health issues and no connection to the matter, spent 44 days in prison and is now under house arrest.

Earlier, Hovhannes Khudoyan, a member of Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan’s defense team, published what he said was the unedited version of the recordings that form the basis of the charges. He claimed the tapes had been manipulated and said he could release the originals because the preliminary investigation in the Sacred Struggle case had been completed.