Legendary Sisakan commander transferred to Vardashen jail

PanARMENIAN.Net - Legendary commander of the Sisakan unit Ashot Minasyan has been transferred from the Sisian police department to the Vardashen penitentiary, National Assembly MP Garnik Danielyan said.

“Just recently, the legendary commander of the Sisakan unit, Ashot Minasyan, was transferred from the Sisian police department to the Vardashen penitentiary.

This is not the first case of political persecution involving the commander. It is no secret that under the current authorities, patriots are not tolerated and end up in prison on various fabricated charges.

When speaking with Ashot Minasyan, one can immediately feel the deep pain he carries over the loss of Artsakh. And now, under some alleged illegal weapons charge, they are trying to deprive of freedom a commander who made an undeniable contribution to the Artsakh war and earned the name ‘Yerkat’ (Iron).

The commander of the Sisakan unit is one of those exceptionally beloved figures whose heroism has inspired films and songs.

The commander himself also writes poetry.

As he likes to say: ‘We do not break, and a Syunik man — even less so…’

Freedom to the legendary commander, freedom to political prisoners,” the MP wrote.

By a verdict issued on December 26, 2024, Ashot Minasyan was found guilty of the charges brought against him and sentenced to two years in prison. However, taking into account the time he had already spent in detention, the court set a final sentence of one year and ten months without applying a suspended sentence.

The defense has filed an appeal, demanding that the first-instance ruling be overturned and that Minasyan be acquitted. The prosecution, in turn, has sought a harsher sentence of two years and six months. The court decided to partially overturn the initial verdict by removing the provision on conditional release and imposing an actual prison term of one year and ten months.