YEREVAN. – The capital city Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction on Thursday sustained the decision on remanding Armenia’s ex-MP and Yerkrapah (Defender of the Land) Volunteer Union Board ex-Chairman, retired General Manvel Grigoryan, in custody.

Also, the court denied the defense’s motion to release Grigoryan on a 10mn dram (approx. US$20,900) bail.

Manvel Grigoryan is charged with illegal possession of weapons and ammunition, and with prior consent of his wife, Nazik Amiryan, his son, Arman Grigoryan, and several other persons not-yet-determined by investigation; appropriation of property allocated to meet the needs of military servicemen and volunteers who defended the borders of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh Republic/NKR) during the four-day war in April 2016 and the days following it; tax evasion; squandering of state resources; and organizing of property usurpation through extortion.

The preliminary investigation into the separate case in the criminal case brought against him and his wife is over. Manvel Grigoryan was remanded in custody, a signature bond to not leave Armenia was selected as a pretrial measure for his wife, and an arrest warrant was issued for his aforesaid son.

On March 25, Grigoryan was taken from a Yerevan penitentiary to a civilian hospital where he is getting treatment.