The defense appealed Tsarukyan's arrest.

The lawyers of the president of Multi Group, leader of the "Prosperous Armenia" party Gagik Tsarukyan, appealed to the appellate court against the decision regarding his arrest.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot", on July 7, the court arrested the leader of the opposition party "Prosperous Armenia", billionaire Gagik Tsarukyan, for two months, who is accused of fraud and tax evasion. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated during the election campaign in May that the "Araratcement" plant, owned by Tsarukyan's family, would be nationalized. After that, the prosecutor's office announced a case regarding violations during the privatization of the enterprise and filed a lawsuit in court demanding the annulment of the privatization of the "Araratcement" enterprise. On July 9, the workers of the "Araratcement" plant managed to reopen the sealed enterprise, while Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan threatened them with dismissals for participating in protests. The anti-corruption court transferred the "Araratcement" company to state management, and the prosecutor's office is also demanding the confiscation of other assets of the businessman. The building of Gagik Tsarukyan's sports complex "Multi Sport" has completely passed into the ownership of the Yerevan city hall.

The appeal for a special review by the defense against the measure of restraint applied to Gagik Tsarukyan in the form of arrest has been submitted to the Appellate Criminal Court of Armenia, reported lawyer Emin Khachatryan.

"The complaint details the violations of substantive and procedural law committed by the first-instance court, the arguments of the defense regarding reasonable suspicion, the legality of the detention and arrest, as well as the possibility of applying alternative measures of restraint. The defense is hopeful that the Appellate Court will provide a full, objective, and impartial assessment of the circumstances of the case, ensuring effective protection of the right to a fair trial and the individual's right to freedom," News.Am quotes the complaint.

The State Revenue Committee of Armenia conducted inspections in other companies related to Tsarukyan, including the "Arinj Mall" shopping center, before sealing the companies of the "Multi Group" (Multi Group) conglomerate, of which Tsarukyan is the president, writes "Graparak" citing employees of the shopping center.

According to the publication, the inspections affected not only the shopping center itself but also the retail outlets located within it. More than 20 sellers were fined 600,000 drams each.

The director of "Arinj Mall" Alik Nazaryan confirmed that committee employees seized documents and data from computers. According to him, the inspections took place two to three weeks before the start of the court proceedings against Tsarukyan.

Tsarukyan's party "Prosperous Armenia" along with other opposition political parties previously issued a statement about the illegitimacy of the authorities and plans to seek their removal.