Russian authorities have accused Khachatur Sukiasyan, an MP from the ruling Civil Contract party and a prominent Armenian businessperson, of being involved in diamond smuggling.
In a statement on Monday, Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) claimed to have ‘suppressed the activities of a group of individuals who systematically stole high-quality rough diamonds’ from ALROSA, a Russian diamond mining firm. They said the group intended to smuggle the diamonds into Armenia to sell.
According to their statement, the group also substituted high-quality and expensive crystals for lower-quality and cheaper ones.
The FSB alleged that the operation would have benefited ADM Diamonds, an Armenian company that imports and processes rough diamonds, linking the company to Sukiasyan.
The FSB said they had detained a group of Russian and Armenian citizens while attempting to steal another batch of diamonds worth over ₽1.7 million ($18,000). Subsequently, a criminal case was opened against them on charges of theft and the illegal circulation of natural precious stones.
During further investigation, raw diamond materials intended for substitution, cash, and expensive jewelry of famous world brands were allegedly seized from residential addresses.
According to the FSB, the organisers of the smuggling ring were the Baghikyan brothers, both Armenian citizens, who they said were wanted internationally for diamond smuggling.
‘Fake news’
Sukiasyan’s office denied the allegations, with spokesperson Anna Mkrtchyan calling the report ‘fake news’, adding that ‘the Sukiasyan family has nothing to do with the diamond factory’.
‘This is yet another piece of fake news. It is entirely untrue and fabricated’, Armenpress quoted Mkrtchyan as saying.
Instead Mkrtchyan claimed the allegations were a continuation of earlier ‘fake news’ which alleged that Sukiasyan planned to acquire the Electric Networks of Armenia in order to sell it to Turkish businesses.
‘It’s the same handwriting. I guess there will be more fake news — it seems an information war has been declared’, Mkrtchyan said.
ADM Diamonds also issued a statement calling the Russian information ‘completely fake, unfounded, and unsubstantiated’, while also denying any ties to Sukiasyan
The company emphasised that the ‘sole and official founder and owner’ of the company was Armenian businessperson Artak Baghikyan.
They also refuted FSB's statement that the company belonged to the Baghikyan brothers, noting that ‘since 2022, the 100% shareholder and owner of the company is only Artak Baghikyan’.
ADM Diamonds statement also noted that they did not receive any raw materials from Russia, claiming instead that they import such materials from the UAE and Hong Kong ‘exclusively legally, in accordance with all legal processes and documents’, claiming that they have ‘all the evidence and proof’.
The statement also included a message from their founding director Artak Baghikyan, who claimed that ‘since the opening of ADM Diamonds, they have been trying to link us with political groups and individuals’.
‘Once again, I officially declare that we have no connection with any political force, individual, party, or group. We do not receive any political support, we do not belong to any political party. We are a business with our business values and principles’, Artak Baghikyan said.
Baghikyan also said that these kinds of rumours disrupt their ‘normal activities and become an unnecessary source of exploitation’.
‘Therefore, first and foremost, we are the ones most interested in the disclosure of this case, and we ourselves will be pursuing it to ensure it happens as soon as possible’.
Despite the denials by both Sukiasyan and ADM Diamonds, RFE/RL reported that Sukiasyan attended the inauguration of the company’s diamond-cutting plant outside Yerevan in 2019, where he also commented on the newly established company’s activities. The Armenian investigative outlet Hetq.am also noted at the time that Sukiasyan is ‘well-informed about details of [ADM Diamonds] contracts and planned operations’.
Arshaluys Barseghyan
