News - Armenia sends request for extradition of businessman Karen Vanetsyan to Russia in order to prosecute him

The Prosecutor General’s Office of Armenia has sent a request to the Prosecutor General’s Office of Russia for the extradition of businessman Karen Vanetsyan, who is under investigation, in order to prosecute him, the Prosecutor General’s Office of Armenia informed Armenian News-NEWS.am. The Prosecutor General’s Office of Armenia, however, did not respond to the question whether the reports of Vanetsyan's arrest in Moscow were accurate. On November 1, 2023, the Armenian prosecution launched a public criminal prosecution against Karen Vanetsyan, a citizen of Switzerland and Armenia, for money laundering. In the respective criminal proceedings, it was found that Vanetsyan, being the actual beneficiary of a non-resident organization of Armenia registered in Cyprus, had acquired and managed 12.5 percent of the shares of the Zangezur Copper Molybdenum Combine of Armenia on July 23, 2018. The said 12.5 percent shares obtained through criminal means actually belonged to Mikayel Minasyan, who held the position of Armenian Ambassador to the Holy See between 2013 and 2018, and was registered under the name of Zangezur Mining Company. Karen Vanetsyan, having been informed that 12.5 percent of the shares of the Zangezur Copper Molybdenum Combine were transferred to the aforesaid company owned by Mikayel Minasyan through criminal means, had given it the appearance of property obtained as a result of legal transactions. Vanetsyan acquired through an offshore organization, with 1 billion drams and 13 million US dollars, and managed the aforesaid property worth at least 14 billion 526 million 300 thousand Armenian drams obtained through criminal means. The whereabouts of Karen Vanetsyan could not be determined during the respective criminal investigation. A motion was submitted to the Anti-Corruption Court of Armenia to select detention as a preventive measure against him. Reports were disseminated in the press that Karen Vanetsyan, the main owner of Exoil Group holding, was arrested in downtown Moscow. In response to these reports, however, Vanetsyan's legal team had issued a statement that the businessman was not arrested.