YEREVAN. – With the Armenian government’s decision on Thursday, Suren Khachatryan was relieved of his duties as Governor of Armenia’s Syunik Region, Zhoghovurd daily reports.  

“And as basis, the government’s decision notes his petition to resign. According to Zhoghovurd’s sources, he made this decision [to resign] after meeting with [President] Serzh Sargsyan. According to the same sources, Sargsyan also promised Khachatryan to make him an MP.       

In all likelihood, several months later when everything calms down, Hayk Grigoryan, who had become MP from an electoral district in Syunik Region, will give up his MP seat. Subsequently, Khachatryan will run [in this electoral district] and become an MP,” Zhoghovurd writes.      

As Armenian News-NEWS.am informed earlier, shots were fired nearby Syunik Regional Governor Suren Khachatryan’s home in Goris city, on June 2 at around 12:10am, as a result of which one person was killed and two others sustained gunshot wounds and were taken to Goris hospital. The person who died was Avo Budaghyan, the former Goris mayoral candidate. The wounded are Budaghyan’s brother Artak, and Nikolay Abrahamyan, a relative and bodyguard of Khachatryan. Subsequently, the wounded were transferred to capital city Yerevan.

A criminal case is launched on charges of murder and illegal carrying, possession, and use of arms and ammunition, and the Military Prosecutor’s Office is conducting the investigation.

Two people are arrested in connection with this incident. One of them is the Syunik regional governor’s son, Tigran Khachatryan, 19, and the other is the governor’s bodyguard, Zarzand Nikoghosyan.