Former director of the Gyumri Without Shacks foundation Mher Khachatryan has been charged with publishing allegedly defamatory information about Investigative Committee Chairman Artur Poghosyan and investigators, according to the Datalex judicial information system.
According to investigators, Khachatryan was charged for making a public Facebook post on February 1, 2026, at 00:18, accessible to other users, containing defamatory information related to the lawful professional activities of the head of the investigative body and investigators, Factor.am reports.
The proceedings were reportedly initiated over a post attached to a photo of Poghosyan, in which Khachatryan harshly criticized him, alleging he served interests other than the law and the public, and accusing the agency of acting on instructions to obstruct an upcoming bishops’ assembly.
Khachatryan, an active Facebook user, has frequently posted strong criticism of the authorities, often expressing support for the Armenian Apostolic Church and the head of the Shirak Diocese, Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan. The events referenced in the post followed the clergyman’s detention.
He has been charged under Part 2 of Article 490 of Armenia’s Criminal Code, which concerns threats, dissemination of information, or other actions harming the rights and legitimate interests of an investigator or representatives of investigative bodies.
A travel ban has been imposed on him as a preventive measure.
The charge carries penalties ranging from restriction of liberty for one to three years, short-term imprisonment for one to two months, or imprisonment for two to five years.
The criminal case was submitted on April 9 to the Shirak Regional Court of General Jurisdiction and assigned to Judge Arpine Shtoyan. The first hearing is scheduled for April 30.
