The administrative head of the Tatev community has been arrested for trafficking a person.
15-09-2026 17:59 Armenia Human Rights
The Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia has revealed the circumstances of the trafficking case involving V.S., perpetrated by the administrative head of the Tatev community, G.M., during the preliminary investigation of the criminal case initiated in the department for the investigation of human trafficking, sexual integrity of minors, and illegal drug trafficking.
In particular, during the preliminary investigation, evident factual data were obtained indicating that V.S., who had been working for G.M. as a livestock breeder since 2020, was supposed to be paid 150,000-200,000 AMD according to their agreement, but did not receive a salary as such; instead, once or twice a month, when money was needed, G.M. gave him 50,000-100,000 AMD.
According to G.M., the amounts taken from him exceeded the payable salary by 6 million AMD, and V.S. was supposed to continue working for free for about 3 years; however, the investigation revealed that these were inflated amounts.
Thus, V.S. started his work every day at 6 AM and finished around 1 AM, mostly without days off. During this time, in cases of loss of livestock, or if V.S. woke up late, performed his work poorly, or refused to go to work due to poor health, G.M. beat him, hurled insults, and made various threats, forcing him to continue working at all costs.
Driven by the heavy workload, V.S. attempted to escape several times, going to Yerevan; however, G.M., by exerting pressure on relatives, learned of his whereabouts and brought him back, forcing him to work again.
G.M. imposed 24-hour surveillance on V.S., forcing him to inform about any movement and prohibiting him from going anywhere after work.
Based on the evidence obtained during the preliminary investigation, public criminal prosecution has been initiated against G.M. under the first part of Article 188 of the Criminal Code (human trafficking or exploitation).
He has been detained.
The preliminary investigation of the criminal case is ongoing.
Notice: The accused in a crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty in accordance with the procedure established by the Criminal Procedure Code by a legally binding court judgment.
* This text was automatically translated by Artificial Intelligence (AI).
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