One of the beaters closed Samvel’s mouth so that he would not scream or call for help. Human rights defenders provide details about Samvel Vardanyan’s brutal beating
Hours ago lawyer Varazdat Harutyunyan wrote on his Facebook page today. “Yesterday, Samvel Vardanyan, who was arrested in connection with the incident with the deputy of the CC party, was brutally beaten by a group of masked people on the way while he was being taken to the police custody.”
Let’s remind that yesterday citizen Samvel Vardanyan, upon seeing Hakob Aslanyan from the CC of the National Assembly (NA) on public transport, called him “treacherous bastard”, after which the deputy attacked the latter.
Later, however, the police arrested Samvel Vardanyan on suspicion of hooliganism, then the report of the Investigative Committee was spread, and the citizen was transferred to the police custody for 72 hours. In fact, Samvel Vardanyan was brutally beaten on the way to the police custody.
Taguhi Tovmasyan, a member of the “I have honor” opposition faction of the National Assembly, who visited Samvel Vardanyan at the police custody with a group of other deputies, posted disgusting details on her Facebook page.
“Samvel was handcuffed in the police car, his escorts stopped the car 300 meters away from him saying they needed to go to the toilet, got out, and left the arrested person alone in the car.
Seconds later, the door opened, two masked men in civilian clothes dragged him out of the car, in a completely dark area where nothing was visible in the capital Yerevan, knocked him to the ground, cursed, threatened, beat, tortured, humiliated him in the most disgusting way, then literally threw back into the car.
Two minutes later, the accompanying policemen came, as if nothing had happened and got into the car, continuing the journey. Of course, they were interested why Samvel was gasping, but they took him to the police custody without any disturbance,” wrote Taguhi Tovmasyan in particular.
Samvel Vardanyan’s defenders Ruben Melikyan and Varazdat Harutyunyan held a press conference regarding the incident.
Ruben Melikyan said that they last saw Samvel last night at 11:45 p.m., after which he was transferred to the police custody, and a horrifying crime took place at night on the road from Paruyr Sevak Street to Erebuni. A person who was completely under the protection of the state was severely beaten.
According to Varazdat Harutyunyan, what they heard from Samvel Vardanyan could only be told by the Armenian prisoners who returned from Baku prisons.
“They made Samvel kneel, then knocked his head on the ground, hit him with fists, giving the most obscene sexual insults, spit on him, pulled down his pants, demonstratively hold the baton between his legs,” said Varazdat Harutyunyan, adding that after beating him for several minutes, Samvel was literally thrown into the car.
According to him, Samvel conveyed that one of the beaters covered his mouth so that he wouldn’t scream, then they took him to the police custody, where an ambulance was already there.
Defense attorney Harutyunyan assumed that the beaters called the ambulance in advance.
Ruben Melikyan mentioned that if criminal proceedings are not initiated by tomorrow, they will report on the crime tomorrow. He also said that they do not think that this was organized by the police.
“Yes, they are accomplices, but this was directly organized by the CC itself, with the complicity of the police,” said Ruben Melikyan. The latter claimed that the beating was organized by the political authority, and by the political authority, he also means the Human Rights Defender.
The defenders said that the police essentially eliminated the obstacle, because they left the helpless, handcuffed citizen alone in the car and went away.
The press conference was in progress when 168.am was informed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs that an internal security and anti-corruption department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs had been appointed to investigate the incident.
Earlier, in response to the inquiry of 168.am, the Investigative Committee said that they had not received a report about the crime.
In response, Ruben Melikyan said that they will not report the crime until morning, and the IC is obliged to initiate criminal proceedings.
As for Samvel Vardanyan’s main case, he was not charged, the criminal proceedings were initiated on the basis of hooliganism part 1, which implies that there are no signs of arrest.
Details in the video.
Gohar Savzyan
