Yerevan Police Chief General Ashot Karapetyan was fired Monday
YEREVAN—The Yerevan police chief became the latest high-ranking law enforcement officer in Armenia to be fired after the two-week standoff during which a group calling itself the “Daredevils of Sasoun” seized a police compound in the Erebuni district.
Armenia’s chief of police, Vladimir Gasparyan, on Monday announced his decision to fire Yerevan’s chief of police General Ashot Karapetyan citing his failure to prevent police violence against protesters and journalists during the tension –filled days of the standoff resulting from the police compound seizure.
Karapetyan was among a group of 14 officers, among them high-ranking officers, who were reprimanded on Friday for what Gasparyan called “improper deployment” of forces against civilians and journalists, the most violent incident of which took place on July 29 in the Sari Tagh district of Yerevan.
On Friday, Gasparyan suspended five police officers for using excessive force against protesters in Sari Tagh.
At a special briefing on Monday, Gasparyan introduced Colonel Sarkis Martirosyan as the new Yerevan Police Chief.
Since the standoff ended on July 30, several high ranking officers within the police and national security services have been fired or disciplined. They included the police chiefs of the Erebuni and Baghramyan police departments.
On Thursday, Armenia’s Prosecutor General Kevork Kostanyan made the surprise announcement that he would be stepping down for “health reasons.”
Source: Asbarez
Link: Yerevan Police Chief Fired
