The circumstances under which the lioness did not wake up after sedation will be investigated, media outlets were told at the Armenian Investigative Committee.

Earlier we reported that one of the three lions belonging to Gagik Tsarukyan, transferred the previous day to Yerevan Zoo, had died.

Let us recall that the animals were transferred to the zoo under special sedation.

The zoo confirmed this information.

“At this moment, we can regretfully confirm that the lioness transferred to the zoo the previous day did not wake up after sedation due to her advanced age and accompanying illnesses (which have already been recorded in the autopsy report).

The animal had damage to organ systems: spleen, liver, lungs, heart; there were cholecystitic changes in the gallbladder; obesity was present; and free fluid was present in the abdominal cavity, which is a consequence of age-related changes,” the zoo noted.

Let us recall that from early morning on July 6, searches were conducted at the mansion of Prosperous Armenia party leader Gagik Tsarukyan, in almost all companies included in the Multi Group concern, as well as in the apartments of the directors of these organizations.

Later, after the search at the mansion was completed, Tsarukyan was detained and taken to the Investigative Committee. At the same time, one more person was also detained.

In its statement, the Investigative Committee explained why Tsarukyan had been detained: “Within one of the criminal proceedings being investigated by the Main Department for the Investigation of Economic Crimes and Smuggling of the Investigative Committee, factual data were obtained indicating that, at the organization of G. Ts., a number of persons allegedly committed especially large-scale fraud and especially large-scale money laundering during 2022–2024.”

Another case was opened on the fact of illegal hunting of a wild animal or bird. Within its framework, 190 stuffed specimens of various animals and birds, as well as 3 lions and 1 tiger, were seized from Tsarukyan’s home; they were recognized as material evidence and transferred to Yerevan Zoo.