Photo-journalist Gagik Shamshyan has given testimony in the assault case of Argishti Kiviryan, who was savagely beaten on the morning of April 30. Mr. Shamshyan testified to officials of the National Security Service (NSS). Pictures taken by the photo-hournalist, who arrived on the crime scene about one half hour after the attack, clearly show bullet casings on the ground. By the time police arrived at the site, the casings had vanished.

“Our investigation showed no such casings. If any one picked them up and is holding them they should hand them over,” said police criminal investigations chief Hovhannes Tamamyan, a few days after the assault.

Based on their evidence the police opened a criminal case with the charge of “a premeditated attempt to inflict light bodily damage”. This caused an uproar among certain crime specialists. Ruben Sahakyan, President of the Council of Advocates,  said that the charge should be one of attempted murder.

The case was then handed over to the National Security Service but to date the original charge has not been upgraded.

In his testimony, Gagik Shamshyan described the unprofessional manner in which the poilce on the scence carried out their investigation of physical evidence. He noted that one officer, hands in his pockets, had used his foot to kick a blood-stained club evidently used by the attackers.