19:57, 15 August 2025

Yerevan court extends arrest of Archbishop Ajapayan

At the first hearing in the case of the Primate of the Shirak Diocese Mikael Ajapayan, the court rejected the defense's motion to release him and extended the period of detention for the man accused of calling for the seizure of power.

As "Kavkazsky Uzel" reported, on June 27, security forces detained the Primate of the Shirak Diocese Mikael Ajapayan (also referred to in the media as Mikael Ajapakhyan), who voluntarily came to the Investigative Committee. He was charged with calling for the seizure of power, which carries a prison sentence of two to five years. The archbishop rejected the charge, and the court arrested him for two months. On August 5, Ajapayan's case was transferred to court.

On the morning of June 27, security forces conducted a search in the building of the Shirak Diocese, while Ajapayan's lawyer was prohibited from being present during the search. The archbishop, who was in Echmiadzin, said he was ready to go with the security forces who arrived there, but the crowd surrounded the car and prevented him from being detained. After that, Ajapayan decided to go to Yerevan and appear at the Investigative Committee. More details about the case of Ajapayan and other political opponents of the current government are provided in the "Caucasian Knot" report "The Main Thing About Political Arrests in Armenia in the Summer of 2025".

The first court hearing in the case of the head of the Shirak Diocese, Archbishop Mikael Ajapayan, took place in Yerevan today. The defense petitioned for the release of the defendant, but the court rejected the petition, extending Ajapayan's arrest for 10 days, the "Novosti Armenia" news agency reports.

Ajapayan himself took the court's decision calmly, telling journalists that "everything is fine" with him. At the same time, he made it clear that he expected such a decision. "There is no justice in Armenia... This is injustice," he said.

"I am not afraid of prison, I am simply ashamed of my country, of my statehood, which I served for 50 years," Armenia Today quotes Ajapayan as saying after the hearing.

Lawyer Yerem Sargsyan stated that Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II was not allowed to visit Mikael Ajapayan in the pre-trial detention center. According to the lawyer, there were no legal grounds for such a refusal, since the meeting of the head of the AAC with the archbishop could not in any way interfere with the investigation.

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Translated automatically via Google translate from https://www.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/413846