An Armenian court also fined Mamikon Aslanian 500,000 drams ($1,200) and banned him from holding public office for three years after finding him guilty of illegally privatizing municipal land during his tenure.
Aslanian rejected the charges as politically motivated before and during his trial that began in June 2022. He pledged to appeal against the guilty verdict, saying that the presiding judge handed it down “under pressure.” He did not say who he thinks exerted that pressure.
“One often feels sorry and disgusted when watching such processes in modern-day Armenia,” Aslanian told reporters.
The 51-year-old ex-mayor was released from custody on bail in July 2024, meaning that he will return to prison and spend another 21 months there if the verdict is upheld by higher courts.
Aslanian, who had governed Armenia’s third largest city for five years, was poised to regain the post of Vanadzor mayor after his bloc won most votes in the 2021 local election. But he was arrested and indicted two days before the inaugural session of the new city council empowered to elect the mayor.
Shortly afterwards, another court banned the council from choosing a mayor until it rules on an appeal against the vote results filed by a pro-government party. The ban still remains in force.
Aslanian claimed on Wednesday that he was arrested because he “didn’t reach a common denominator” with the authorities in Yerevan in the wake of the 2021 ballot. He did not elaborate.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s Civil Contract party has denied opposition claims that he ordered Aslanian’s arrest and prosecution to make sure that the Vanadzor municipality remains under his control. Opposition leaders have accused Pashinian of effectively overturning the local election results.