Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is violating the presumption of innocence by making statements about Nver Tsarukyan, the son of Prosperous Armenia party leader Gagik Tsarukyan, party spokesperson Iveta Tonoyan said, Sputnik Armenia reported.

On May 12, Civil Contract party prime ministerial candidate Nikol Pashinyan threatened to have Gagik Tsarukyan’s son, Nver Tsarukyan, brought back from Belarus. He stated that Tsarukyan’s son had never fired a shot on the frontline, but had fired shots in Kotayk Province and was now on the run.

“Nikol Pashinyan violates the presumption of innocence when speaking about Nver Tsarukyan. He assumes for himself the function of issuing verdicts. I regret that the political struggle has reached this stage, but I hope we will return to a constructive field,” Tonoyan said.

She stressed that Pashinyan has single-handedly assumed the authority to regulate the work of all legal institutions. Tonoyan also raised a rhetorical question about the purpose of the interior minister, the director of the National Security Service and the head of the Investigative Committee if, according to her, all decisions are made by Nikol Pashinyan.

Nver Tsarukyan is on an international wanted list following a shooting incident at a casino in Tsaghkadzor. On October 26, 2024, an altercation occurred between employees of the Cosmos casino in Tsaghkadzor and Nver Tsarukyan along with his bodyguards. The dispute escalated into a fight, during which gunshots were fired.