Prosecutor refuses to release suspect of rioting in Gyumri, advocate says

On February 5, the Public Prosecutor of the Shirak Region of Armenia refused to release from custody Mnatsakan Aleksanyan, who was detained on suspicion of provoking disorders at the Russian General Consulate in Gyumri, said the suspect's advocate.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on January 14 and 15 residents of Gyumri and Yerevan held two mass protests – both ended in clashes with the police: 38 protesters were detained in Yerevan, and 13 – in Gyumri. Later, they all were released. In late January, policemen began searching for the alleged organizers of the riots. On February 5, the Investigating Committee (IC) of Armenia reported the detention of Mnatsakan Aleksanyan, 22, a resident of the village of Sarnakhbyur, Shirak Region, on suspicion of hooliganism and use of violence against a power official.

Aleksanyan was detained without any due grounds, his advocate Ayk Arutyunyan told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent, adding that after the protest action Aleksanyan had repeatedly appeared to the police when summoned; however, now they argue that he could escape from investigation or commit some illegal acts, when at large.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.