The Investigative Committee of Armenia announced on Wednesday the opening of a criminal case against five citizens of the country and two former residents of Karabakh for attempting to seize power. According to Ukrinform, this information was reported by Echo of the Caucasus.
The Armenian Investigative Committee claims that the suspects were trained in Russia for the purpose of usurpation.
The court has arrested three of them, while the other four are wanted. The investigation alleges that they planned to seize power in Armenia using weapons.
It is reported that the accused recruited Armenian citizens and former residents of Karabakh for a monthly reward of 220,000 Russian rubles (approximately $2,380) each.
Trained in Russia
The recruited individuals were allegedly sent to Rostov-on-Don for a three-month training camp to learn how to handle new types of heavy weapons.
There, they were subjected to polygraph tests, according to the report.
The recruits were then informed that the ultimate goal of the training was to return to Armenia to overthrow the current government.
They were trained in close-quarters combat and building assaults. Some Armenian citizens reportedly refused to participate in the coup and returned home.
Investigators stated that the group had accomplices in Russia, but their identities have not yet been confirmed. Moscow has not commented on this information.
According to News.am, the recruited Armenians were transported to Russia for training at the "Arbat" military base, named after the Armenian battalion "arBat," which is part of the Russian army and fighting against Ukraine.
As reported by Ukrinform, on February 23, Prime Minister Pashinyan announced that Armenia had suspended its participation in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), where Russia plays a dominant role, as the organization "failed to fulfill its security obligations" to the country.
