The question reporters were eager to ask Nareg Hartounian at today’s press conference was who does he think is behind the financial pressures bringing brought to bear on his family and why.

Hartounian had no ready answer but said that Sevak Arzarouni, a former director of GH Storage Enterprises whom the Hartounian family charges with embezzlement, was manipulated as a pawn by more powerful figures.

Hetq Chief Editor Edik Baghdasaryan was also at the press conference and said that he thought that Arzarouni was also a victim in the affair.

“It all centers on the watch factory, in which the Hartounian family is the second largest shareholder. The first is a well-known Moscow figure. Certain individuals want to wrest the shares, estimated to be worth $8-10 million, from the family. Hayk Davtyan, a top advisor to the Minister of Finance, was in on the negotiations. Davtyan has been linked to other deals related to Northern Boulevard in Yerevan and elite residential buildings. His name is also linked to the Alyans, a legal advisory company who has provided services to companies involved in other shady deals. We’re talking about $8-10 million. Follow the money trail. They want to pressure Nareg into giving it all up and leaving Armenia,” Baghdasaryan said.