YEREVAN. – The reports on the Armenian Police finding Russian soldier Valery Permyakov—who is the accused in the recent murder of the Avetisyan family in Gyumri city—and, subsequently, handing him over to the Russian border guards, are not true.

First Deputy Chief of Police Hunan Poghosyan stated the aforesaid at a press conference on Monday. In his words, it were the Russian border guards who had found Permyakov.

“We collaborated with the coworkers at the National Security Service, and the Investigative Committee [of Armenia].

“Immediately after the incident that day, we received many similar reports as to where Permyakov might be.

“Such a report had come in from the Armenian-Turkish border, too; we had thoroughly searched the area,” Poghosyan said, in particular.

He added, however, that it was not a top priority for the Armenian side as to who would apprehend this Russian military officer.

As reported earlier, six members of the Avetisyan family—including a two-year-old girl—were shot dead, and a six-month-old baby was wounded in their house in Gyumri on January 12; but the baby boy died in hospital on January 19.

Valery Permyakov, a serviceman of the 102nd Russian Military Base in the city, stands accused in this crime. Permyakov was apprehended by the Russian border guards near the Armenian-Turkish border on the same night, he was arrested on January 14, and he is held in custody at the Russian military base.

The soldier is charged under Russian law, with “the murder of more than two people” and “desertion with a service weapon.” And on January 21, the Investigative Committee of Armenia also filed a criminal charge against Permyakov, and with “premeditated murder of two or more persons.” The Russian soldier has accepted the charge.

The Prosecutor General’s Office of Armenia had stated that Valery Permyakov will face justice under Russian law, and this information had provoked a wave of protests in Armenia, especially in Gyumri and capital city Yerevan.