Edik Baghdasaryan

Ararat Davtyan

Yesterday evening at around 6:45, Armineh Petrosyan parked her car in the vicinity of the Yerevan Delphinarium at took her kids to see the show

She is the sister of Armen Petrosyan, the owner of the Aray chain of electronics stores, whose body was found slumped over the wheel of his car last October 16. A revolver was found in the dead man’s hand.

When Armineh left the aquarium some two hours later she found an envelope on her car’s windshield. At first she thought it might be an advert. Opening it, she found a CD inside.

“Even then, I just thought it was some type of advertising and marvelled at how developed the field was becoming,” say Armineh.

After returning home she played the CD. To her amazement it contained the video-recording of a Skype conversation between Tatyana, the former wife of her dead brother, and a person called Artur.

From the conversation, it can be inferred that Artur had close ties with Armen Petrosyan because he mentioned details of their travels together. During the conversation, Tatyana and Artur are heard to be plotting something against Armen and discussing several possible scenarios.

Portions of the conversation dealing with organizing the murder of Armen Petrosyan

Also understood from the conversation is that a classmate of Tatyana was also mixed up in the plot, for they were willing to pay the person 100,000 AMD and more if the person complained. It was this classmate that mentions the Ingush or Kazakh who would probably execute the murder.

Artur – Can the Ingush fly to Armenia? The people your classmate was mentioning, are they Ingush or Chechen?

Tatyana – They’re Kazakh. Maybe Ingush or Chechens. I can’t remember. No, they’ll make their way through the mountains.

Artur – Through the mountains? They have to get weapons, enter the city, look around...Armen won’t be up in the mountains...

Tatyana – Of course through the mountains. They won’t appear at any border crossing.

Artur – Yeah, but they won’t be killing Armen up in the mountains. He won’t be there.

Tatyana – I mean to say they won’t be flying in on a plane...

Artur – In other words, they’ll be crossing the border illegally?

Tatyana – On foot, of course.

Artur – Same difference. They’ll still need a car and other stuff.

Tatyana – That’s why we have all this money.

Artur – Just as long as they don’t ask for things later; a car, this or that.

After 20 minutes of the recording it becomes clear that they had discussed two options with these “Caucasian guys”. It also becomes evident that Artur and Armen Petrosyan were on very close terms when Artur says “he’s informed about everything.” He continues, “They’’ have to get filled in on a lot. Like where the kindergarten is, the chauffeur, the bodyguards. It’s as if I were to go to Kazakhstan. It would be hard to pull something off. Same thing with them coming to Armenia.”

Artur – They don’t know who Armen’s friend is, right? I know them all...

Tatyana – Like I said. The best is on the way, in Georgia.

Artur – In Georgia?

Tatyana – On the road in Georgia. Yes.

Artur – They’ll do it before getting to Georgia?

Tatyana – Yes, I think so...Or else in Georgia. He’s not a citizen of Georgia so I don’t think they’ll make a fuss.

Artur – No. Do you know what it’s like in Georgia? Like a sheriff in America. It’s harder in Georgia than...Georgia is like Dubai. The cops don’t accept bribes, nothing...

Artur persuades here that it’s harder in Georgia since the police take things very seriously and there are cameras all over. Nevertheless, Artur had to receive information on Monday, after which, everything would be cleared up.

It’s clear from the recording that the conversation between Artur and Tatyana lasts for two hours. However the recording on the disc is about 25 minutes in duration. It would be interesting to know what parts were cut out.

Artur mentions that he’s in Moscow. Law enforcement can find his particulars easily enough and even get in touch with him via Tatyana. Hetq has tried to connect with Artur through Skype, but so far with no luck.

Hetq has learnt that only hours after the purported suicide of Armen Petrosyan, Tatyana went to his home in Dubai and tried to gain entry. Petrosyan’s representative there did not let her in and Tatyana even filed a complaint with the UAE police, arguing that she had the right as the dead man’s wife. The UAE police asked her why she wasn’t at the side of her dead husband. Tatyana never entered the house.

The police can easily uncover what it was that Tatyana needed to collect from the Dubai house only after Armen’s death.

On October 16, 2011, Armen Petrosyan’s body was found in a car on a dirt road leading to the village of Getamech off the Yerevan-Sevan highway.

The 31 year-old businessman was found holding a pistol in his right hand and gunshot wounds to the head. On the passenger seat of the car police found a bag full of ammo.

That same day the Kotayk Police launched a criminal case of “suicide” and “illegal weapons possession”.

Aray Electronics was founded in 1988 and carried such major brands as LG, Toshiba, Electrolux, Zanussi, Panasonic, Vestel, Hitachi, and Phillips. In addition to seven stores in Armenia, it also had branches in Georgia and the UAE.

Armen took over the business when his father Arayik died prematurely. The son was regarded as a skilled businessman

Initially, the Armenian press reported that Armen had been shot at close range and that the killers then cleaned off the weapon used and placed it in the dead man’s hand with his finger on the trigger.

Armen mostly resided in Dubai these last few years. He met Tatyana, an employee with a petroleum company, in Dubai in 2004. They had a daughter out of wedlock.

In an interview with news.am at the time, Tatyana Chadenkovayan said she couldn’t believe that Armen was capable of committing suicide, unless it was under the influence of alcohol.

Tatyana also said that years after they met Armen beat her and had relations with other women and that he started to drink. She claims they stopped living together in 2009 and that Armen took their daughter from her.

A forensic test found no traces of drugs or alcohol in Armen Petrosyan’s body.