Armenia’s Investigative Committee (IC) earlier today confirmed rumors that law enforcement officers were conducting searches at the Yerevan headquarters of the Tashir Group, a holding corporation owned by Samvel Karapetyan, recently arrested on charges that he made public calls for people to “seize power and to overthrow the country’s constitutional order.”

Karapetyan was arrested on June 18 after he gave an interview with news.am in which he denounced those politicians who have recently called for a new leader of the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan has claimed that Armenian Apostolic Church Catholicos Karekin II has fathered a child, this breaking his vow of celibacy. Pashinyan has called for new elections to replace Karekin II.

IC spokesperson Kima Avdalyan claimed the raids were not connected to the above case.

Following Karapetyan’s statement, Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan announced that his administration seeks to nationalize the Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) utility..

Pashinyan has also threatened to dismiss all ENA employees engaged in “political machinations”.