Armenian court extends ex-minister Khachatryan’s detention by two months

An Armenian court extended former finance minister Gagik Khachatryan’s detention by another two months. His lawyer, Yerem Sargsyan, told Azatutyun that the court had permitted Khachatryan’s wife and daughter to visit him, whereas previously only his lawyers had been able to do so.

Khachatryan, also a former chairman of Armenia’s State Revenue Committee, has faced criminal proceedings since 2019. He was detained again after an additional charge was brought. In a statement published on September 4, 2026, his defence team said he had been in custody since September 2 at Yerevan-Kentron penitentiary.

The hearing was closed, and Azatutyun said it could not examine the investigators’ arguments or the court’s reasons for continued detention. Sargsyan said the Investigative Committee argued that Khachatryan could obstruct the investigation if released. He disputed that reasoning, saying investigators had spent the preceding two months conducting only inspections and commissioning expert examinations that his client could not have obstructed.

Charges and restrictions on treatment abroad

Khachatryan faces corruption charges including particularly large-scale embezzlement, complicity in money laundering and particularly large-scale bribe-taking. His defence team said in its September 4 statement that he denied the charges and that the cases had no final judicial ruling.

The family-visitation permission concerns access to him in custody, not travel for treatment. The defence team said a court had allowed Khachatryan to travel to Germany in April 2025, but a travel ban imposed in another criminal proceeding prevented his departure.

Dispute over medical care

Khachatryan has a spinal condition and is now brought to court on a stretcher, having previously attended independently and later used a wheelchair. German doctors who operated on him earlier consider another operation in Germany urgent, while the latest Armenian state medical examination found no need for surgery.

Sargsyan said prolonged confinement to bed had caused pressure sores—injuries to the skin from sustained pressure—and created a risk of pneumonia. He described the sores as being at an early stage but warned that worsening wounds could lead to a potentially fatal infection. Armenia’s Health Ministry requested a written inquiry when approached about these concerns.

The lawyer argued that house arrest would allow relatives to provide care and doctors to visit, including to supervise exercises aimed at improving muscle weakness and treating the pressure sores.

In an earlier account carried by Yerkir, Sargsyan said the defence had been told a visiting German doctor needed permission to provide medical care. He said the requested visit was for examination and consultation, and alleged that the requirement was intended to block an independent doctor’s access. Responding to him, ministry spokesperson Mariam Tsatryan said Khachatryan and other prisoners received necessary and adequate medical care under the law, with referrals for specialist examinations when needed.

The defence team’s September 4 statement also announced an application to the European Court of Human Rights for an urgent measure. The lawyers asked the court to order Armenia’s government to release Khachatryan immediately, stop repeatedly moving him on a stretcher and remove the travel restriction so he could receive treatment abroad.