Two parliamentary candidates from the Strong Armenia alliance have been arrested as part of an ongoing criminal investigation into alleged vote-buying and large-scale money laundering, Armenia’s Investigative Committee said.
According to the Investigative Committee, the two suspects were located by law enforcement authorities and placed in pre-trial detention.
Investigators have initiated public criminal prosecution against six candidates from the Strong Armenia alliance. They are accused under provisions of the Criminal Code related to materially inducing voters and laundering money on an especially large scale.
Detention orders were issued for all six suspects, and their execution was assigned to the police of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
Authorities said that four of the six candidates remain at large, while efforts to locate them continue.
The Investigative Committee noted that the pre-trial investigation is ongoing and no further details have been released at this stage.
Under Armenian law, persons charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty by a final court verdict.
