It is necessary to stop criminal prosecution with respect to former Minister of Defense Seyran Ohanyan, who is charged with overthrow of constitutional order through violence under the case of the events of March 1, 2008. This is what Seyran Ohanyan’s attorney Karen Mezhlumyan declared at the Criminal Court of Appeal today.

He presented his objections regarding the appeals of the Prosecutor General’s Office and the injured party during his nearly two-hour speech and demanded that the Criminal Court of Appeal reject the appeals under the case of second President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan and other ex-officials.

“If the appeals are not rejected and a new judicial act is rendered, I believe the Criminal Court of Appeal must render a decision on terminating the proceedings of the criminal case with respect to Article 300.1 of the Criminal Code and stop criminal prosecution with respect to my client Seyran Ohanyan,” he said.

The attorney thoroughly touched upon the constitutionality of Article 300.1 of the Criminal Code under which his client is charged.

Mezhlumyan declared that Article 300.1 of the Criminal Code of Armenia was not supplemented during the events of March 1, 2008 and the existing Article was Article 300 (usurpation of power, actions targeted at overthrow of constitutional order of the Republic of Armenia), and Article 300 of the Criminal Code was supplemented and turned into Article 300.1 in March 2009.

The attorney also reminded that the charge was changed under the “Case of the Seven” under pressure from the international community. He also noted that the “Case of the Seven” and the case regarding his client and other ex-officials have been separated from the main case of the events of March 1, 2008.