Armenian authorities have detained former President Robert Kocharyan and formally charged him with abuse of office, bribery and large-scale money laundering in a major corruption investigation dating back to his presidency.

Kocharyan, 71, who served as Armenia’s president from 1998 to 2008 and now leads the opposition Armenia Alliance, was detained Tuesday as investigators conducted searches at properties linked to his family and business interests. His eldest son, Sedrak Kocharyan, was also detained in the investigation, along with several other suspects.

Armenia’s Prosecutor General’s Office said Kocharyan faces three counts of abuse of official powers, two counts of accepting particularly large bribes and four counts of particularly large-scale money laundering. Nine other people have also been formally charged in connection with the case, including Sedrak Kocharyan and former President Serzh Sargsyan.

Prosecutors allege that Kocharyan used his presidential position to transfer valuable state-owned properties to himself, people close to him and affiliated companies under favorable conditions, including prices significantly below market value and without public tenders.

Investigators say some properties were allegedly registered through affiliated companies in an effort to conceal their ownership and origins before being developed, sold or transferred to third parties. Authorities have also alleged that dozens of properties worth billions of Armenian drams were transferred as part of the suspected bribery scheme.

The investigation has expanded beyond Kocharyan and his immediate family. Former President Serzh Sargsyan, who served as Kocharyan’s prime minister during the final year of his presidency before becoming president himself in 2008, has also become a defendant in the case.

Kocharyan’s lawyer, Aram Orbelyan, has rejected the accusations and described the prosecution as politically motivated.

Orbelyan said the defense believes the conduct described by prosecutors does not constitute a criminal offense and questioned the alleged connection between decisions taken during Kocharyan’s presidency and subsequent transactions involving his family.

Kocharyan and his political allies have repeatedly criticized Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government, particularly its foreign-policy shift away from Moscow and toward closer relations with the European Union and the West.

Kocharyan currently heads the Armenia Alliance, one of the country's principal opposition forces and the second-largest bloc in parliament.

His detention comes amid increasingly bitter political tensions between Pashinyan’s government and opposition groups. The former president’s arrest followed a heated parliamentary confrontation between Prime Minister Pashinyan and Kocharyan’s younger son, opposition lawmaker Levon Kocharyan, less than a day before the arrests.

Kocharyan’s supporters have portrayed the proceedings as part of a broader campaign against political opponents, while government authorities maintain that the investigation concerns alleged corruption and the misuse of state assets.

The case also carries a broader geopolitical dimension.

Kocharyan has traditionally supported close relations with Russia, which remains an important economic and security actor in Armenia. Pashinyan, who came to power following mass protests in 2018, has instead pursued a significant reorientation of Armenian foreign policy, seeking closer relations with the European Union and Western countries.

The political divide has become increasingly pronounced as Yerevan reduces its reliance on Moscow and seeks to deepen ties with Western institutions. Kocharyan has emerged as one of the most prominent critics of that policy shift.

The former president has faced legal proceedings before.

In 2019, he was arrested and put on trial over his role in the aftermath of Armenia’s disputed 2008 presidential election, when clashes between police and protesters left at least 10 people dead. The proceedings were ultimately terminated in 2021 after the charges against him were dropped.

The latest case is separate and concerns alleged corruption and financial crimes linked to decisions and transactions during his 1998-2008 presidency.

A court is now expected to consider prosecutors’ requests regarding Kocharyan’s pretrial detention, while the investigation into the wider alleged corruption network continues. His son Sedrak Kocharyan has meanwhile been ordered to remain in pretrial detention for two months.

The arrests mark one of the most significant confrontations yet between Armenia’s current government and its Moscow-friendly opposition, combining a major corruption investigation with the country’s increasingly consequential political and geopolitical realignment. (ILKHA)