Armenian Church bishop sentenced to 2 years of imprisonment
Archbishop Mikael Ajapakhyan was accused of publicly calling for the overthrow of the government.
The Yerevan court sentenced the head of the Shirak Diocese of the Armenian Church, Archbishop Mikael Ajapakhyan, to two years in prison. As Armenpress reports, this is stated in the published final part of the verdict.
He is charged under part 2 of article 422 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia (public calls for the seizure of power, violation of territorial integrity, renunciation of sovereignty, or violent overthrow of the constitutional order).
The archbishop does not admit guilt and considers the case political. In court, he stated that even being behind bars, he feels free and grateful for the opportunity to "talk to God and himself".
The start of the term is set from the moment of the actual detention of the archbishop. He has been in custody for more than three months, since June 28.
In the same month, Archbishop Bagrat (Vazgen Galstanyan), who heads the Tavush Diocese and the movement "Sacred Struggle", was arrested on similar charges. He also criticizes Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and is accused of attempting to seize power.
As the UOJ wrote, earlier the court found the head of the Shirak Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church guilty.
