Armenia’s Prosecutor General has charged former Aragatzotn Governor Sargis Sahakyan and his brother of embezzling 72 million drams ($182,000) in a 2009 scheme to jack up the price of land to be purchased to build a section of the North-South Highway.

Sahakyan allegedly allowed his brother to build on the agriculturally zoned land, thus raising its market value.

The former governor is charged with forcing the local village mayor to rubber stamp the construction.