Authorities Rule Out Terrorism in Yerevan Bus Blast

YEREVAN (Combined Sources) — The Office of the Prosecutor-General said Armenia’s National Security Service (NSS) has ruled out the possibility that the explosion in a Yerevan commuter bus that left two people killed and seven injured was caused by a terrorist attack.

Investigators have found a SIM-card at the scene of the April 25 blast that belonged to a twice-convicted citizen of the Republic of Armenia. They also found explosives and detonators at his home in a search. They did not name the suspect and his whereabouts are unknown, but officials said it is possible the suspect was one of the two people killed in the blast.

The individual, investigators say, planned to hurt his relatives, but it is not clear whether he planned to do it on the bus or was just transporting the explosive materials when they apparently detonated. Probe is under way to check all versions and reveal the causes of the explosion.

Armenia’s National police chief Vladimir Gasparian said earlier that the blast occurred on or under a second-row bus seat and that investigators were trying to identify a passenger thought to have been sitting there.

Nine of the ten people in the bus, including the driver, the seven injured passengers and one victim, have been identified. All of them are Armenian nationals.

The apartments of all of them have been searched as part of the investigation, no items of interest for the criminal case have been found, their involvement in the explosion has been ruled out.

The second victim of the blast is yet to be identified. The body is unrecognizable, and DNA test is needed. Probe is under way to find out whether the second victim was the owner of the SIM card found at the scene.