Yerevan court sets sky-high $2,100,000 bail for former high ranking security official

A Yerevan court of appeals has set a 1,000,000,000 drams (roughly 2,100,000 dollars) bail for the release of Vachagan Ghazaryan, a former ranking security official, from pre-trial detention.

The Special Investigative Service confirmed the information to ARMENPRESS.

Ghazaryan’s attorney Armen Harutyunyan told ARMENPRESS that he hasn’t yet formally received the court’s decision. He said when they receive it they will study it and later issue a statement.

Ghazaryan served as first deputy director of the state protection service under the NSS until 2018 May 17. While in office, he was in charge of the security detail of then President Serzh Sargsyan.

Vachagan Ghazaryan was detained by National Security Service (NSS) agents on June 25 and placed under arrest the same day. Two days later he was charged for illicit enrichment and false asset declaration. He was remanded in custody pending trial on June 28.

Ghazaryan carried about half a million dollars in cash on him at the time of his arrest. He claimed that he withdrew the money from a bank with the purpose of returning it to the real owner of the money, without mentioning a name. Another 50,000 dollars was discovered in his car. The National Security Service said it had intelligence reports that Ghazaryan was planning to withdraw an additional 3,000,000 dollars from his and his wife’s bank accounts.