On December 26, the Court of Appeals upheld the verdict handed down by the Kentron and Nork Marash Court which sentenced Grigor Igityan to 4.5 years imprisonment on the charge of defrauding American-Armenian benefactors George and Carolann Najarian out of substantial amounts of property.

Let us remind readers that the lower court had decided to let Igityan free on his own recognizance, by merely signing an affidavit that he would not take flight, until the sentence took effect. The court sustained the charge that, “Through the use of fraud, Mr. Igityan swindled the Najarians out of a photo-shop they owned located at 32 Abovyan Street, Yerevan, and partially constructed buildings and the property thereon located at #4 and #11/12 in the “Dzoragyugh” ethnographic neighbourhood.”After throwing out all the documentation presented in Igityan’s name, the court returned the above-mentioned property to its rightful owners.

On December 26, Judge Masis Rehanyan of the Court of Appeals, after reviewing the appeal of Mr. Igityan, read out the court’s verdict in the absence of both Mr. Igityan and his lawyer Kromvel Grigoryan. The latter failed to show up at the court session despite being duly informed in advance. The accused had also failed to show up at the preceding court session on December 24. On that occasion, the defense lawyer had presented the court with an affidavit declaring that Mr. Igityan was undergoing necessary medical attention.

Hrayr Ghoukasyan, the Najarians’ legal representative, notes, “That affidavit, signed by Doctor Yevgeny Melikyan, was neither duly affixed with an official stamp and had no legal basis. It claimed that Igityan had medical issues pertaining to the large toe on his foot. By the way, this is the same physician that previously had signed off on an affidavit claiming that Igityan suffered from heart problems. This affidavit was presented to the Court of First Instance as evidence. We later ascertained that this was a fake document since no such diagnosis existed and the accused was never hospitalized.”

The sentence of the Court of Appeals takes effect immediately which means that Grigor Igityan must be taken into police custody forthwith and placed behind bars.

Hrayr Ghoukasyan mentions that, “We have no information regarding the whereabouts of Igityan from the last trial session, but by rights, he must be taken into custody. The Court of Appeals will inform the Criminal Division of the Internal Security Department of the verdict. The Criminal Division, in turn, must see that the verdict is carried out with assistance by the Police.”

Attorney Ghoukasyan also notes that the above real estate presently registered under Mr. Igityan’s name and now seized by the court will soon undergo the process of having their titles corrected and thus be freed up.

“We are also concerned that Grigor Igityan might be so inclined to damage these properties but we will take steps to secure their well-being. Most likely we will hire security guards to keep watch at the various sites,” adds the Najarians legal counsellor.
Mr. Igityan has the right to appeal the verdict at the higher Court of Cassation within the next six months. However, the verdict of the Court of Appeals must still be enforced in the meantime.

Attorney Ghoukasyan opines, “The question remains whether the Court of Cassation will accept the appeal and review the case. Only cases that fulfil certain requirements are accepted for review; for instance those with possible significant impact on the legal field and jurisdictional issues. But even if the case is granted a new hearing it doesn’t mean that the appeal contains sufficient legal grounds for the current verdict to be overturned.”