A year ago, H.A. appealed to Right Side Human Rights Defender NGO and reported that he had made a statement about the crime in the Garrison Prosecutor’s Office No. 1 of the RA Military Prosecutor’s Office in 2021, regarding which a criminal case had been initiated and 4 people were charged under Article 309.1 of the RA Criminal Code, Part 1,  2, Clause 4 (torture). H. A applied to Right Side NGO and asked to take over the protection of his interests as a victim, as a result of which, from October 5, 2022, the lawyer of Right Side Human Rights Defender NGO was involved in this case as the authorized representative of the victim H.A.

H.A. informed the Organization that in 2020 when he was in the Armed Forces X military unit in the Republic of Artsakh, he had been regularly beaten by the officers because of his sexual orientation. After reporting the crime, a criminal case was initiated and he was recognized as a victim.

Currently, the criminal case has been transferred from the Republic of Artsakh to the Department of Investigation of Crimes on Torture and Abusing or Exceeding Authorities by Officials through Using Violence of the General Department of Investigation of Particularly Important Cases of the RA Investigative Committee. 

Already in September 2023, the investigator of this case made a decision to stop the criminal prosecution against 4 defendants, on the basis of not having committed the alleged act.

The legal team of Right Side NGO filed an appeal to the court, demanding to cancel the termination of the criminal prosecution against G. L., M. N., G. B., and R. G., rejection of the complaint by the head of the procedure for crimes against the state authorities of the RA General Prosecutor’s Office V. Avetisyan 02.10.2023 the decisions. We will continue to protect the interests of the victim until justice is restored, and we condemn any type of violence, especially if it is caused by a person’s sexual orientation, gender identity, or other personal characteristics.

October 25, 2023 Armenia, Yerevan