VIOLENCE BY NEW CHIEF OF POLICE OF YEREVAN
Commenting on the appointment of Ashot Karapetyan as chief of police
of Yerevan, Advocate Vahe Grigoryan posted on his Facebook wall that
his name features in the opposition activist Grisha Virabyan's case
who eventually went to the European Court of Human Rights, and the
ECtHR ruled in his favor. Below are some excerpts from the judgment
on Virabyan v. Armenia. A.K. is the newly appointed chief of police
of Yerevan.
17. The applicant further alleges that, some minutes after police
officer A.M. had left the office, police officer H.M. entered and
started swearing at him. Police officer H.M. then approached him and
kicked him on the left side of his chest and punched him in the face.
The applicant grabbed the mobile phone charger which was on the desk
and hit police officer H.M. Having heard the noise of the scuffle,
three other police officers entered the office and took him to another
room. About ten minutes later police officer H.M. and another police
officer, A.A., came to that room and started brutally beating him.
After they left the room, another police officer, A.K., entered the
room and started hitting him in the area of his scrotum with a metal
object. He was then handcuffed and police officer A.K. continued
punching and kicking him below the waist, after which he lost
consciousness.
36. On 25 April 2004 the applicant was questioned as a suspect at
the hospital by investigator M. and made the following statement:
36 "...Then other officers came and took [H.M. and A.A.] out. I would
like to indicate that at the very beginning both [H.M. and A.A.]
kicked me on my testicles. Some while after [H.M. and A.A.] had
been taken away from the office, [another police officer A.K.] came
to the office [(I learned his name and position from other officers
after the incident)] and started swearing at me, trying to humiliate
me, twice spat on me and punched my testicles[. Then] he kicked my
feet several times and left. Before leaving he hit me again on my
testicles with his keys. [A.K.], before beating me in the office,
ordered everybody to leave, saying that he was going to abuse me."
38. On 27 April 2004 the applicant was again questioned as a suspect
at the hospital by investigator M. He was asked about the kind of
conversation he had had at the police station before the incident,
concerning the fact that he had been carrying a firearm. The applicant
replied that none of the police officers had asked him about any
firearm. The only thing he had been asked about was why he was
attending demonstrations and taking others with him. Such questions
were asked by police officer H.M. Furthermore, while police officer
A.K. was beating him, he was asking him which of the opposition
leaders was encouraging his activity. The applicant also added that
police officer A.K. had ordered that he be handcuffed with his hands
behind his back, after which he started beating him in that position.
http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/sites/eng/pages/search.aspx?i=001-113302#{"itemid":["001-113302"]}
18:15 16/04/2013 Story from Lragir.am News:
http://www.lragir.am/index.php/eng/0/right/view/29643
Commenting on the appointment of Ashot Karapetyan as chief of police
of Yerevan, Advocate Vahe Grigoryan posted on his Facebook wall that
his name features in the opposition activist Grisha Virabyan's case
who eventually went to the European Court of Human Rights, and the
ECtHR ruled in his favor. Below are some excerpts from the judgment
on Virabyan v. Armenia. A.K. is the newly appointed chief of police
of Yerevan.
17. The applicant further alleges that, some minutes after police
officer A.M. had left the office, police officer H.M. entered and
started swearing at him. Police officer H.M. then approached him and
kicked him on the left side of his chest and punched him in the face.
The applicant grabbed the mobile phone charger which was on the desk
and hit police officer H.M. Having heard the noise of the scuffle,
three other police officers entered the office and took him to another
room. About ten minutes later police officer H.M. and another police
officer, A.A., came to that room and started brutally beating him.
After they left the room, another police officer, A.K., entered the
room and started hitting him in the area of his scrotum with a metal
object. He was then handcuffed and police officer A.K. continued
punching and kicking him below the waist, after which he lost
consciousness.
36. On 25 April 2004 the applicant was questioned as a suspect at
the hospital by investigator M. and made the following statement:
36 "...Then other officers came and took [H.M. and A.A.] out. I would
like to indicate that at the very beginning both [H.M. and A.A.]
kicked me on my testicles. Some while after [H.M. and A.A.] had
been taken away from the office, [another police officer A.K.] came
to the office [(I learned his name and position from other officers
after the incident)] and started swearing at me, trying to humiliate
me, twice spat on me and punched my testicles[. Then] he kicked my
feet several times and left. Before leaving he hit me again on my
testicles with his keys. [A.K.], before beating me in the office,
ordered everybody to leave, saying that he was going to abuse me."
38. On 27 April 2004 the applicant was again questioned as a suspect
at the hospital by investigator M. He was asked about the kind of
conversation he had had at the police station before the incident,
concerning the fact that he had been carrying a firearm. The applicant
replied that none of the police officers had asked him about any
firearm. The only thing he had been asked about was why he was
attending demonstrations and taking others with him. Such questions
were asked by police officer H.M. Furthermore, while police officer
A.K. was beating him, he was asking him which of the opposition
leaders was encouraging his activity. The applicant also added that
police officer A.K. had ordered that he be handcuffed with his hands
behind his back, after which he started beating him in that position.
http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/sites/eng/pages/search.aspx?i=001-113302#{"itemid":["001-113302"]}
18:15 16/04/2013 Story from Lragir.am News:
http://www.lragir.am/index.php/eng/0/right/view/29643