A lawyer for Nver Tsarukyan, wanted in Armenia in relation to a shooting incident, said he is currently on a ‘business trip’ to Belarus and Russia. He is the son of Armenian oligarch Gagik Tsarukyan, who is also the founder of the Prosperous Armenia Party. 

On 26 October, an incident involving Nver Tsarukyan occurred at a casino in Tsaghkadzor. According to an account from Iravaban.net, an argument arose between casino employees and Tsarukyan and his bodyguards, which escalated into a brawl that included guns being fired. No one was reportedly hurt in the incident. 

Over two weeks after the incident, Armenia’s Investigative Committee told the media that criminal proceedings had been initiated against five individuals for hooliganism and robbery, and a warrant had been issued for their arrest.

According to the media reports, among the wanted was Nver Tsarukyan. Nonetheless, Tsarukyan’s lawyer Emin Kachatryan, said that he was on a ‘business trip’ to Belarus following the incident. 

Khachatryan said that Nver Tsarukyan is a shareholder of about 30% of Multi Group, a business consortium, founded by his father, and claimed that his trip to Belarus and Russia was related to Multi Group affairs. 

‘Now, he can go to Belarus and return to [Russia] every two days,’ the lawyer told RFE/RL, adding that he works ‘intensively’ with  Multi Group business associates there. 

It is also unclear when the arrest warrant was issued, if it is international, or if Armenia requested authorities in Russia or Belarus to locate and extradite Tsarukyan.

Khachatryan insisted that the trip was not a ploy to avoid the criminal charges, but instead claimed the trip was scheduled before the incident, and that authorities had been informed about the trip. He added that authorities would be notified after Tsarukyan returned to Armenia. 

Moreover, Khachatryan also noted four out of the five others accused in the case, including Tsarukyan's bodyguard, have already turned themselves into law enforcement officers. Three have been detained. Khachatryan further claimed the charges against all of the accused, including Tsarukyan, are groundless and ‘the result of an incorrect legal assessment’.

Although the details of the incident have not been publicised, a spokesperson for the Investigative Committee confirmed that gunshots were fired at the scene, but said there were no casualties.

Kachatryan disputed the version of this story, and denied there were gunshots fired. He also said Tsarukyan’s bodyguard took the footage recorded by the casino’s security cameras. 

Nver Tsarukyan was involved in another criminal case in 2019, resulting in two people being killed and another seven injured. Relatives of one of the deceased alleged that Nver Tsarukyan was one of the gunmen that pulled the trigger, but Tsarukyan’s lawyer has refuted the accusation, and no charges against him have formally been filed. 

Gagik Tsarukyan and Belarus President Aliaksandr Lukashenka have close ties, and Tsarukyan has referred to him as ‘his friend’ The Belarusian Embassy in Armenia is adjacent to Tsarukyan’s mansion in the village of Arinj on the outskirts of Yerevan. 

Gagik Tsarukyan is one of the richest men in Armenia, and is under investigation for a variety of alleged crimes, including vote-buying, illegal business practices, and organising a fraudulent land transfer scheme. 

Having begun his business career in food processing during the 1990s, over the course of the following three decadesTsarukyan amassed a stake in a wide variety of industries throughout Armenia, including alcohol and food production, casinos, hotels, mineral extraction, pharmaceuticals, and most recently, bitcoin mining.

He has also had a large influence over sporting in Armenia, financially supporting a large number of athletes, sports centres, and serving as the head of the Armenian Olympic Committee since 2005. 

Tsarukyan has also had a successful, if tumultuous, career in politics.

In 2022, he sponsored the construction of the 33-metre-high statue of Jesus Christ on Mount Hatis. The project sparked concern about the risks the proposed statue might pose to natural and cultural monuments on the mountain.