The court denied the motion filed by the attorney of owner of Fifth Channel television company Armen Tavadyan and several media representatives to replace Tavadyan’s pre-trial measure with personal pledge, saying the motion is groundless, as reported Head of the Public Relations Department of the Prosecutor General’s Office of Armenia Arevik Khachatryan.

The prosecutor found that preliminary investigation of the criminal case is actively underway in the current stage and there is still a need for several investigative and other procedural actions in which case any other pre-trial measure besides detention can’t help prevent the potentially unlawful conduct of the accused-on-trial.

The author of the appeal was notified about the court’s decision via a phone call.

Armen Tavadyan is detained under the case of Varuzhan Mkrtchyan (a person presenting himself as a supporter of second President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan) offering a person affected by the events of March 1, 2008 to refuse to testify. Tavadyan was arrested after being suspected of giving false testimony and conclusion or bribing or forcing wrong translation and was then detained.