Armenia: Serob Bozoyan appealed against judgment on balloon explosion

Serob Bozoyan has appealed to the Court of Appeal of Armenia against the judgment of the court of general jurisdiction of the administrative districts Kentron and Nork Marash that deprived him of freedom for one year for filling balloons with methane.

Mr Bozoyan was the only defendant in the case on the explosion of balloons on May 4 in Yerevan. The court decision was passed on October 17; and Bozoyan was compelled to sign the recognizance not to leave.

"The court's decision would have gone into effect on November 17, if the complaint had not been filed within one month from the date of the verdict," said Karen Manucharyan, a Bozoyan's advocate, and added that his client would be at large under the recognizance not to leave until the decision Court of Appeal.

The lawyer also said that along with the complaint the Court of Appeal received the mitigating circumstances, which had not been taken into account by Judge Gagik Pogosyan during sentencing. In particular, his client had pled guilty; and the lawyer drew attention to health condition of Bozoyan and his son, as well as to the social status of his family.

Today Serob Bozoyan was taken to an oncology hospital, where after examination, as his wife Marina Bozoyan said, he will be operated on.