Today the trial court of Kentron and Nork Marash administrative districts presided by judge Mkhitar Papoyan continued the trial against former prisoner of conscience Vardges Gaspari alleged to have committed hooliganism.
Police officers have given testimonies against Vardges Gaspari brought in by the police after a peaceful rally last October 20. Those officers don’t know what law regulates their activities, they don’t know that the chief of police is not a minister; they also don’t know whether an agent or a company commander makes a decision on bringing a person in or, let’s say, what is the difference between a squad and a platoon.
Although one of these police officers, on whose breast it was written “2-2-188,” introduced himself in the court as the commander of the 1st company of the 1st officer battalion, it turned out that he represented no. 188 of the 2nd squad, 2nd platoon.
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Police officer Artur Baghdasaryan’s testimony and interrogation ended today. He described the protest that took place last October 20 outside the Government House, which parents of soldiers who had died in the army and veteran pilots participated in. He said that the protest had been peaceful, only Vardges Gaspari had impeded the work of the Cabinet by his shouts. According to his logic, “Members of the Cabinet of the Republic of Armenia are members of the society” and he has certain duties to maintain public order. He recalled that Vardges Gaspari “cursed” shouting “without mentioning names” “traitors,” “rogues,” “militants,” “murderers.” This police officer asserted that Gaspari had not uttered sexual type swearwords, however, in his opinion, uttering those words loudly was a curse.
He described how ministers left the Government House – “Minister Alik Sargsyan” – and at that moment Gaspari had started to shout even louder, “disrupting public order.” The witness remembered that he had warned Gaspari a few times before that and when Alik Sargsyan had been getting into his car, he had pinioned Gaspari’s hands, guiding him to Nalbandyan St. and had said that he had to bring him in. In response to Gaspari’s counselor Robert Revazyan’s question whether he had made the decision to bring him in, the witness said yes. Whereas during the previous court session, another police officer Gevorg Manukyan said that he had made that decision, which had surprised the judge.
Certainly, a question followed whether it was possible in superior-inferior relationship or what legal act regulated that all, and the witness couldn’t answer. The commander didn’t recall what the name of his inferior was. At the beginning of the session, he even said the wrong name of the man who had been on duty with him. The witness recalled that he had gone home in a minibus after bringing Gaspari to the police station. He said that Gaspari had hit him on the head with his hand after turning abruptly, he had felt badly for a moment, but then he had felt better.
Seeing obvious controversy, the defense filed a motion to make public the testimony given by the witness during the preliminary investigation, as well as the doctor’s certificate from the 3rd policlinic. It turned out that the witness who had been diagnosed with “brain concussion” had been given a forensic expert’s certificate, by which he had been examined in the 3rd policlinic and then he had been taken to Armenia Hospital, as a result of an “emergency call.” The witness found out in the court that he had been injected anesthetic, after which he couldn’t remember whether he had gone home or not. The police officer justified himself, “Well, a few months have passed, I don’t remember” not noticing the sarcasm in the question of the defense, “Are you taken to the hospital in an ambulance every day?”
Let us mention that only www.aravot.am followed the court session.
The next court session is scheduled for March 22, at 9:30 am.
Ruzan MINASYAN
