Opposition MPs gathered outside Yerevan’s Corruption Court today to voice their support of former Armenian education minister Armen Ashotyan, arrested earlier today on money laundering and abuse of official powers.

The court will decide whether to detain him later today.

With Honor faction MP Taguhie Tovmasyan told reporters that Ashotyan is the subject of political persecution for his criticism of the Pashinyan administration.

"If the court decides to detain Armen Ashotyan it will mean that we’ll have a new political prisoner in Armenia," said opposition MP Tovmasyan.

Police arrested Ashotyan on the above charges in a case involving Yerevan’s State Medical University.

Ashotyan was education minister from 2009 to 2016 and served as deputy chairman of the Republican Party of Armenia.

Update: Armenia’s Investigative Committee (IC) says Ashotyan organized the embezzlement of AMD 185,606,000 collected from membership fees of Yerevan’s State Medical University’s trade union. The IC also charged Ashotyan with a shady real estate transaction while board of trustee’s chairman of the medical university.