YEREVAN. – While conducting a search at the home of president Hrayr Tovmasyan of the Constitutional Court (CC) of Armenia, his attorneys petitioned for the search to be videotaped, which the Special Investigation Service (SIS) investigator verbally denied, but, at his preference, violating the privacy of Tovmasyan’s personal life, took photographs in the apartment. Mihran Poghosyan, one of Tovmasyan's legal defenders, told this to reporters today.
"It is obvious what is happening to Mr. Tovmasyan in the context of this criminal case," he said. "It was so obvious when it came to political persecution and the use of various repressive methods."
Poghosyan said the investigator made violations while conducting a search in Tovmasyan's apartment.
"In particular, the search [court] order, not yet gotten familiarized by me and Mr. Tovmasyan, is the investigator's primary duty," he said. "The investigator did not submit these documents, and began his illegal activities."
Referring to the SIS press release that Tovmasyan's legal defenders had been given an opportunity to get familiarized with the aforesaid court order, Poghosyan said: "In the case of official statements, it would have been good if the SIS had specifically granted our motion to videotape, and then the reality would have been obvious that the investigator has not informed Tovmasyan of the [court] order."
Asked whether the legal defense team will manage to appeal the court's order, Mihran Poghosyan said: "We will make an appeal after having a copy of the order."
As reported earlier, SIS investigators have been conducting a search in Hrayr Tovmasyan's apartment since early this morning.
Hrayr Tovmasyan, President of the Constitutional Court of Armenia, has been charged with abuse of power. The decision to involve him as a defendant in the respective criminal case was made by the Prosecutor General on December 26, 2019, the same day that President Armen Sarkissian signed the law granting the serving Constitutional Court judges the opportunity to retire early.