Armenian detainees say they were forced to spy

Armenians accused of espionage - Davtyan Davit Tigrani and Sujyan Gevorg Rubenovich - have appeared before court.

According to Report, the trial in the Baku Court of Grave Crimes, chaired by Judge Ali Mammadov, was declared open.

The prosecutor announced the indictment.

According to the indictment, the detainees illegally crossed the Azerbaijani border as a group, collected military information, and transmit it to the Armenian special services.

They collaborated with the Armenian special services in 2019. In September 2020, together with Davit Davtyan, they entered Syunik from Goris and then into Azerbaijan. They joined illegal Armenian armed groups in the area and obtained illicit weapons. Then they collected information about the positions and numbers of the Azerbaijani army in the areas of hostilities and passed it to the Armenian special services.

On November 11, 2020, the Azerbaijani Armed Forces detained aforementioned persons on their way to Shusha via the Lachin corridor.

Davtyan and Sujyan were charged under Articles 228 (unlawful possession of weapons), 276 (espionage), 279 (creation of an illegal armed formation or groups), 318 (illegal crossing of the state border) of the Criminal Code.

The judge said the defendants could face up to 15 years in prison if the charges are proven in court.

Davtyan Davit Tigrani and Sujyan Gevorg Rubenovich pleaded partially guilty. They said they only felt guilty for crossing the Azerbaijani border illegally.

During the trial, Sujyan Gevorg testified that he has a charity organization in Armenia:

"When the war broke out, those who knew me began to bring aid. I collected that aid and helped the soldiers and the people in Khankandi. I shared posts about all that help on my Facebook page. I collected aid from Goris and took it to military units in the Khojavand region. I took pictures of each one and sent them to people who helped. I also came to Shusha for worship. There, I made statements to journalists, then created videos about the situation in Khankandi and shared them on social networks. On November 10, after the act of capitulation, I decided to go to Khankandi. Because there were many appeals to us from there. I had to help them. On November 11, we drove through the Lachin corridor. The Russian peacekeepers checked our car and allowed us in. We continued on our way down the corridor. Then we saw the Azerbaijani flag and stopped. At that moment, we were detained by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces."

Answering the prosecutor's questions, Sujyan Gevorg stressed that in 2018 he founded the New Armenia Homeland Diaspora Organization:

"I met a person named Artak. However, I did not know that he was an employee of the special services. I knew him as the head of an organization of Armenians living in Russia. I met David in the summer of 2020 to take aid. I did not use weapons. However, once in the war zone, I took a gun from a soldier and had a photo with it."

It turned out that the testimony the detainee gave during the investigation was not the same as his testimony given in court.

He testified during the investigation that his father was a Russian citizen and lived in St. Petersburg: "We lived with our family in that city for a long time. I finished school in the Shirak province of Armenia. I graduated from university in Russia. Then I returned to Armenia due to my military service. I was engaged in professional boxing. For this reason, I served in the military as a scout in Kirovakan."

In his testimony to the investigation, the accused noted that in the spring of 2019, a person from the Armenian special services called him and offered to meet:

"Since I was also unguilty before the law, I met with an employee of the special services named Artak. He asked me questions about my organization. He said that there was a problem with money transfers- there were transfers related to dirty money. For this reason, he stated that a criminal case would be opened against me, and I would be arrested. I also promised to cooperate with them because I was afraid of being arrested, and I signed a statement. He noted he would give me assignments at different times. After the war started on September 27, 2020, Artak called me and said we should meet. The next day we met in a cafe. He told me that the situation was bad and that Armenia needed men like me. I also expressed my desire join the armed forces. He instructed me to gather information about the Azerbaijani army's positions, numbers, and equipment in the combat zone and tell him. I had to accept. I told him I would move with David, and Artak agreed. The next day we crossed into Azerbaijan from Goris."