General tendencies, the actions undertaken against economic crimes, and the results of prosecutorial functions in the investigations have been summarized at the Department for Combating Economic Crimes of the General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Armenia.

 

In addition, the number of crimes decreased in 2020. 844 criminal cases have been initiated on economic crimes by the RA competent law enforcement bodies, which is about 10% less than in 2019 (931). 1045 criminal cases of this nature were investigated in 2020. This number decreased with 155 compared with 2019.

 

Despite the workload of the investigative bodies and the Prosecutor's Office does not decrease, which is proved by the fact that from the previous year more than 23% criminal cases unfinished were transferred from 2021 than compared from 2019 to 2020. Besides, despite the number of cases under investigation decreased, criminal cases more with 16 compared with the previous year were sent to court with indictments, and the court examined and completed almost as many cases as in the previous year. In the result of the latter, 21 people were convicted, 8 people out of them were sentenced to imprisonment.

 

In order to fully reveal the cases of the mentioned crimes, to provide operative, complete and overall investigations, the prosecutors supervising were instructed about 35% more than in 2019, and the relevant departments of Police and the operative and intelligence department of the State Revenue Committee were given 47 instructions were given to the Intelligence Department.

 

Current analyzes of criminal cases show that in many cases, criminal cases related to crimes against economic activity are subject to the same publicly dangerous acts committed under the same scheme. Accordingly, the attention of the relevant bodies was drawn to that circumstance, and the need to discuss the possible involvement of relevant officials in such cases was emphasized.

 

The damage caused to the state by the proceedings completed during the preliminary investigation and court hearings of cases on economic crimes in 2020, as well as during the current year, was more than 20 billion AMD, out of which about 2.5 billion AMD was recovered. In order to recover the damage caused to the state during 2020, seizures in the amount of 13.5 billion AMD were imposed on the property and monetary means of the accused people.

 

Anyway, the Department for Combating Economic Crimes of the General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Armenia instructed the Investigative Department of the RA State Revenue Committee to consider goods exported or imported by economic entities as property subject to be seized, strictly following the obstructing possible tendencies of economic activities, not allowing any improper interference to the process.

 

At the same time, it has been instructed to refrain from seizing goods which are subject of economic activity in all cases where people having the status of suspect or defendant have other real estate or movable property.

 

In all cases when sufficient factual data is obtained during the preliminary investigation, which testified on corrupt behavior of the employees of SRC abusing their office, it was instructed to initiate criminal cases against state service crimes.

 

In order to recover the damage caused to the state regarding the investigated and completed criminal cases, about 4.6 billion AMD was granted by the lawsuits filed by the subdivisions of the Prosecutor's Office on favor of the state budget.

 

The above-mentioned recorded indicators, regarding especially few final decisions, the increased number of transferred cases to next year, as well as the detection and recovery of the damage caused, largely due to measures undertaken to prevent coronavirus, which had a great impact on economic activity. The Artsakh war of 2020 and the martial law conditioned by it had a significant impact.