On May 27, 2026, General Prosecutor Anna Vardapetyan canceled the decisions of September 20, 1999 to stop the criminal prosecution against Arsen Khachatryan and Armen Khachatryan, the bodyguards of the Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs and National Security of the RA, to cancel the restraining order against them and to terminate the proceedings of the criminal case regarding the murder of Artsrun Margaryan.
The decisions were canceled on the basis of the newly revealed circumstances, as a result of the proceedings carried out in the Investigative Committee.
Let’s remind that in 1999, during the preliminary investigation, Arsen and Armen Khachatryan, the bodyguards of Artsrun Margaryan, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs and National Security of RA, were charged with the murder of Artsrun Margaryan. Later, however, the preliminary investigation body came to the conclusion that they did not commit any crime, and Artsrun Margaryan, according to the version of the previous investigation, committed suicide after attempting to kill his bodyguards. On that basis, the criminal prosecution was stopped, and the proceedings of the criminal case regarding the murder were terminated.
As part of the new criminal proceedings initiated in 2025, the materials of the criminal case were studied, additional investigative actions were carried out and a forensic commission examination was appointed.
According to the conclusion of the new forensic medical examination received on March 31, 2026, it was recorded that as a result of the severe gunshot wound in the chest region of Artsrun Margaryan, his mobility would be sharply limited, and he would not be able to perform any purposeful and coordinated action in practice after a short time. According to the conclusion of the examination, in the conditions of such an injury, it was practically impossible that Artsrun Margaryan could independently point the weapon to the head and fire a fatal shot.
Taking into account that the study of the newly emerged circumstances yielded data, according to which Artsrun Margaryan could not perform such actions that would be necessary for suicide after the gunshot wound he received in the chest area, RA General Prosecutor Anna Vardapetyan canceled the relevant decisions of September 20, 1999.
The criminal investigation is ongoing.
PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
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