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ARMENIA: EIGHT THINGS THAT DON'T ADD UP ABOUT THE GYUMRI MURDERS
EurasiaNet.org
Jan 26 2015
January 26, 2015 - 1:22pm, by Marianna Grigoryan
Two weeks after the killing of a family in the northern Armenian town
of Gyumri, there are more questions than answers concerning the actions
and motives of the individual accused of committing the mass murder,
18-year-old Russian army private, Valery Permyakov.
Some answers may seem straightforward, while others, given the
case's sensitivity, may never be disclosed by Armenian and Russian
investigators.
According to the official charges against him, Permyakov entered the
Avetisian household in Gyumri in the early morning of January 12,
supposedly seeking a drink of water. He allegedly shot or stabbed to
death all seven members of the family; supposedly from fear that the
Avetisians would inform the 102nd Russian army base in Gyumri that he
had deserted. Six died on the spot; the seventh victim, six-month-old
Seryozha Avetisian, died on January 19.
A Russian military tribunal in Armenia will try Permaykov, but the
name of his lawyer -- a Russian citizen who lives in Armenia --
has not been disclosed, according to the Russian news service Interfax.
Both countries have set up parliamentary commissions to monitor
investigators' work, and officials from both countries have repeatedly
pledged that justice will be served. But the Armenian public remains
skeptical: protesters again took to the streets on January 26 in the
Armenian capital, Yerevan, to demand that Permyakov face trial in an
Armenian court. Given the public wariness, the lingering questions
surrounding the criminal investigation could become a political
liability for the Armenian government.
The central, unanswered questions surrounding Permyakov's actions are:
1. Why Desert with Only a Gun and Bullets?
Armenian investigators say that Permyakov left the 102nd army base in
Gyumri at 4am on January 12 with an AK-74 rifle. Permyakov himself
is reported as saying he went "to take a stroll." Yet many question
why Permyakov would choose to abandon his post with no supplies
other than a gun and bullets. According to the government's weather
service, ArmHydMed, area-temperatures on January 12 fell to 17 to 20
degrees Celsius below zero - a frigid low even for a Siberian native
like Permyakov.
2. How Did Permyakov Enter the Victims' House?
The Avetisians lived in a gated, private house in the center of Gyumri,
some three to four kilometers from the 102nd army base.
Neighbors have told reporters that the family usually left the gate
unlocked. A new, stronger door was purchased for the house two days
before the murders.
Armenia's special investigation service claims that Permyakov broke
a window to enter the house. The defendant says only that he wanted
to drink water. He claims that he did not know the family, nor do
the Avetisians' relatives know of any previous ties. Investigators,
though, have not disclosed any hypothesis as to why he chose this
particular gated house in his alleged search for water.
2. If Permyakov Wanted Water, Why Not Just Ask?
To many locals, long accustomed to sharing food and cigarettes with
Russian soldiers, this is the strangest question. Permyakov was a
recent arrival, but those posting on the 102nd base's page on the
Russian social network VKontakte speak openly about Gyumri traditions
of hospitality toward soldiers in need.
Did Permyakov Encounter Resistance?In a January 17 interview with
Aysor.am, Armenian attorney, Tamara Yayloian, who initially attended
Permyakov's interrogations, claimed that the soldier said that he
had shot the first Avetisian, a man, when he reached for the phone
after waking up, seeing him, and yelling.
After hearing voices in an adjacent room, Permyakov alleges that he
entered and killed two people there. He then supposedly moved into the
third adjoining room, and shot dead two of its occupants and, when
his gun misfired, stabbed two children with his bayonet. A corridor
connects all three rooms. To many, that raises the expectation that
the occupants of the other rooms would have awoken at the sound of
gunfire, and tried to stop the intruder, who would not have known
his way around the house in the dark.
Video from the crime scene, however, shows six of the seven family
members dead in their beds. Some openly question if Permyakov acted
alone, but no evidence exists to support such speculation.
5. Why Did No One Hear the Shots?
The Avetisians lived in the center of Gyumri, a city of 146,355 people,
on a street not far from the city hall and train station.
Neighbors' houses were just meters away. Yet, surprisingly, though
investigators say they have interviewed 30 witnesses, no information
exists about anyone who reported hearing gunshots or other commotion.
In a country where people take a keen interest in their neighbors'
activities, this also arouses suspicions. Armenian investigators
estimate that the killings occurred at about 6am - a time of day when
people could hear a pin drop in a neighbor's residence, criminologist
Sergei Galoian told a January 14 news conference. The Avetisians'
next-door neighbor, Rita Petrosian, a relative of the family, only
discovered the murders around noon when she went to the house for a
usual coffee. Official reports make no mention of a silencer.
6. Did Someone Tamper with the Crime-Scene?
Official reports state that military boots with Permyakov's name in
them, an AK-74 rifle with 5.45-milimeter bullets, a cartridge with
30 bullets, and one with a single bullet were found scattered at the
scene. Permaykov's uniform was found carefully folded in the house.
According to the official story, Permyakov left the Avetisians' house
dressed in the clothes of the owner's son, Armen. An explanation
as to why the suspect would be so careless as to leave behind such
evidence remains unclear.
7. Why Did Nobody Notice Permyakov on the Run?
While Gyumri may not be bustling in the early morning, a Russian
man tramping solo on foot through the winter countryside toward the
Turkish border is likely to have attracted someone's notice. Yet no
details have been given about the exact location of Permyakov's arrest,
how Russian border guards recognized him, nor how, with a newcomer's
knowledge of the area, he made it to the border on his own.
In Armenia, where coverage of crime scenes is video-rich, this absence
of information appears anomalous.
8. Why Was Permyakov Not Tested Earlier for Mental Illness?
On January 24, the Russian news agency Interfax cited an unnamed
source who reported that tests will be run "in the nearest future"
to assess Permaykov's mental health, as well as to compare DNA samples.
The tests will be conducted at the 102nd army base, according to the
source. Reasons for waiting more than two weeks after the suspect's
arrest to perform such analyses were not provided.
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/71766
EurasiaNet.org
Jan 26 2015
January 26, 2015 - 1:22pm, by Marianna Grigoryan
Two weeks after the killing of a family in the northern Armenian town
of Gyumri, there are more questions than answers concerning the actions
and motives of the individual accused of committing the mass murder,
18-year-old Russian army private, Valery Permyakov.
Some answers may seem straightforward, while others, given the
case's sensitivity, may never be disclosed by Armenian and Russian
investigators.
According to the official charges against him, Permyakov entered the
Avetisian household in Gyumri in the early morning of January 12,
supposedly seeking a drink of water. He allegedly shot or stabbed to
death all seven members of the family; supposedly from fear that the
Avetisians would inform the 102nd Russian army base in Gyumri that he
had deserted. Six died on the spot; the seventh victim, six-month-old
Seryozha Avetisian, died on January 19.
A Russian military tribunal in Armenia will try Permaykov, but the
name of his lawyer -- a Russian citizen who lives in Armenia --
has not been disclosed, according to the Russian news service Interfax.
Both countries have set up parliamentary commissions to monitor
investigators' work, and officials from both countries have repeatedly
pledged that justice will be served. But the Armenian public remains
skeptical: protesters again took to the streets on January 26 in the
Armenian capital, Yerevan, to demand that Permyakov face trial in an
Armenian court. Given the public wariness, the lingering questions
surrounding the criminal investigation could become a political
liability for the Armenian government.
The central, unanswered questions surrounding Permyakov's actions are:
1. Why Desert with Only a Gun and Bullets?
Armenian investigators say that Permyakov left the 102nd army base in
Gyumri at 4am on January 12 with an AK-74 rifle. Permyakov himself
is reported as saying he went "to take a stroll." Yet many question
why Permyakov would choose to abandon his post with no supplies
other than a gun and bullets. According to the government's weather
service, ArmHydMed, area-temperatures on January 12 fell to 17 to 20
degrees Celsius below zero - a frigid low even for a Siberian native
like Permyakov.
2. How Did Permyakov Enter the Victims' House?
The Avetisians lived in a gated, private house in the center of Gyumri,
some three to four kilometers from the 102nd army base.
Neighbors have told reporters that the family usually left the gate
unlocked. A new, stronger door was purchased for the house two days
before the murders.
Armenia's special investigation service claims that Permyakov broke
a window to enter the house. The defendant says only that he wanted
to drink water. He claims that he did not know the family, nor do
the Avetisians' relatives know of any previous ties. Investigators,
though, have not disclosed any hypothesis as to why he chose this
particular gated house in his alleged search for water.
2. If Permyakov Wanted Water, Why Not Just Ask?
To many locals, long accustomed to sharing food and cigarettes with
Russian soldiers, this is the strangest question. Permyakov was a
recent arrival, but those posting on the 102nd base's page on the
Russian social network VKontakte speak openly about Gyumri traditions
of hospitality toward soldiers in need.
Did Permyakov Encounter Resistance?In a January 17 interview with
Aysor.am, Armenian attorney, Tamara Yayloian, who initially attended
Permyakov's interrogations, claimed that the soldier said that he
had shot the first Avetisian, a man, when he reached for the phone
after waking up, seeing him, and yelling.
After hearing voices in an adjacent room, Permyakov alleges that he
entered and killed two people there. He then supposedly moved into the
third adjoining room, and shot dead two of its occupants and, when
his gun misfired, stabbed two children with his bayonet. A corridor
connects all three rooms. To many, that raises the expectation that
the occupants of the other rooms would have awoken at the sound of
gunfire, and tried to stop the intruder, who would not have known
his way around the house in the dark.
Video from the crime scene, however, shows six of the seven family
members dead in their beds. Some openly question if Permyakov acted
alone, but no evidence exists to support such speculation.
5. Why Did No One Hear the Shots?
The Avetisians lived in the center of Gyumri, a city of 146,355 people,
on a street not far from the city hall and train station.
Neighbors' houses were just meters away. Yet, surprisingly, though
investigators say they have interviewed 30 witnesses, no information
exists about anyone who reported hearing gunshots or other commotion.
In a country where people take a keen interest in their neighbors'
activities, this also arouses suspicions. Armenian investigators
estimate that the killings occurred at about 6am - a time of day when
people could hear a pin drop in a neighbor's residence, criminologist
Sergei Galoian told a January 14 news conference. The Avetisians'
next-door neighbor, Rita Petrosian, a relative of the family, only
discovered the murders around noon when she went to the house for a
usual coffee. Official reports make no mention of a silencer.
6. Did Someone Tamper with the Crime-Scene?
Official reports state that military boots with Permyakov's name in
them, an AK-74 rifle with 5.45-milimeter bullets, a cartridge with
30 bullets, and one with a single bullet were found scattered at the
scene. Permaykov's uniform was found carefully folded in the house.
According to the official story, Permyakov left the Avetisians' house
dressed in the clothes of the owner's son, Armen. An explanation
as to why the suspect would be so careless as to leave behind such
evidence remains unclear.
7. Why Did Nobody Notice Permyakov on the Run?
While Gyumri may not be bustling in the early morning, a Russian
man tramping solo on foot through the winter countryside toward the
Turkish border is likely to have attracted someone's notice. Yet no
details have been given about the exact location of Permyakov's arrest,
how Russian border guards recognized him, nor how, with a newcomer's
knowledge of the area, he made it to the border on his own.
In Armenia, where coverage of crime scenes is video-rich, this absence
of information appears anomalous.
8. Why Was Permyakov Not Tested Earlier for Mental Illness?
On January 24, the Russian news agency Interfax cited an unnamed
source who reported that tests will be run "in the nearest future"
to assess Permaykov's mental health, as well as to compare DNA samples.
The tests will be conducted at the 102nd army base, according to the
source. Reasons for waiting more than two weeks after the suspect's
arrest to perform such analyses were not provided.
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/71766