Based on operative data received by the National Security Service of the Republic of Armenia, Ara Vardanyan, Director of the “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund, was arrested on July 2 on suspicion of embezzlement, as well as on abuse of power by the NGO employee.
Vardanyan confessed that by managing a 25 million dram credit card issued to the fund, he used the funds for personal purposes, directing those to different online casinos to make bets.
According to him, Vardanyan returned the wasted funds by the funds raised for the Foundation. Then, he credited his personal cash funds to the account of the Foundation thereby concealing the fact of embezzlement of funds.
Only within the last week Vardanyan has transferred about 14 million drams to online casinos from the bank card of the fund, while from 2016 to 2018, this sum amounted to about 130 million drams.
Currently, investigations take place in the “Hayastan” All-Armenian Fund to identify possible abuses and embezzlement, as well as to verify the legitimacy of spending the donated money.
Ara Vardanyan is arrested. The preliminary investigation is underway.
Armenian National Security Service Press Center
