The National Security Service of RA, being faithful to the functional principle of the protection of fundamental constitutional rights of citizens, especially the right to life, from different threats, carrying out consistent fight aimed at complete exclusion of the use of violence in personal and public relations, as a result of operational and search measures and investigative activities undertaken within the functions vested upon it by the law in the fight against crime, received factual information on the preparation of contract killings of RA citizens, illegal acquisition and keeping of firearms by a group of persons, periodic crossings of the RA state border with the use of false documents.     

In particular, it was determined that one of the residents of Yerevan, with mercenary motives, on order, for the remuneration of 190.000 USD, having taken upon himself to organize a murder of a RA citizen engaged in entrepreneurial activity, entered into a prior agreement with his acquaintance on illegal willful deprivation of the given person's life,  promising to give the half of the sum after the commission of the crime and providing him with a firearm – a gun designed for shooting with 5.6 mm caliber bullets – and bullets (ammunition) for murder, as well as 1000 USD for current expenses. To fulfill the organizer's instructions, with the direct organization and under the direction of the latter, a perpetrator, controlling the movements of the future victim, in June 2014, on Gyulbenkyan street in Yerevan, shot in the direction of the targeted person who went out for a walk and inflicted bodily injury to him. Not content with the result, in order to complete the order and implement a criminal intent, the organizer gave him an instruction to continue controlling the movement of the victim and to commit his murder at the earliest opportunity.     

Besides, with the aim to illegally willfully deprive 5 RA citizens of their lives, the instigator instructed to control also the movement of these persons involving another acquaintance into this process and leaving the choice of conditions and time of the commission of a contract killing to his discretion. In order to control the movement of the above-mentioned persons, to prepare and commit a murder the organizer rented an apartment for the perpetrator in Yerevan, provided him with a vehicle and make-up accessories to disguise himself and become unrecognizable, as well as illegally acquired and gave him а TT pistol, an improvised gun-riffle with a silencer and a gunsight and bullets of their caliber, which they illegally kept with a prior agreement in the rented apartment until the end of February 2020. At the stage of the preparation of murders the organizer twice crossed the protected RA state border using the obviously false passport of a citizen of the Russian Federation with his photo, but with the data of another person. In order to bury the corpses of the targeted persons after the planned murder and to conceal the traces of the crime the organizer discussed with the perpetrator and chose appropriate places under the operational control of the RA NSS, however, he didn't achieve a criminal purpose for reasons beyond his control as his actions were prevented as a result of the actions of the RA NSS.      

A criminal case has been initiated in the Investigation Department of RA NSS on the facts of the apparent crime according to the corresponding articles of the Criminal Code of RA; two persons who were preparing the crimes were neutralized and detained. Multiple investigative activities, including searches, were conducted. Due to the combination of irrefutable evidence charges have been brought against them, arrest has been chosen by the court as a measure of restraint.   

The preliminary investigation is being conducted, appropriate measures are being taken to detect motives of the preparation of the crimes, instigators and the circle of persons involved in the commission of the crime, as well as other episodes of crime, including the ones committed abroad.

Note: The suspect or accused of an alleged crime is considered innocent as long as his/her guilt is not proven in a manner prescribed by the Code of Criminal Procedure of RA - by the court decision entered into legal force.