GYUMRI — Gyumri city Prosecutor has demanded a life sentence for Valery Permyakov, a Russian soldier charged with killing an Armenian family of seven in the city on January 12, 2015.

Six members of the Avetisian family – including a two-year-old girl – were shot dead, and a six-month-old baby – Seryozha – who was seriously wounded and died a week later.

The case led to mass protests in Gyumri and Yerevan against Russia’s military presence in the country and calls for the trial to be heard by Armenian judges instead of Russian military judges.

In August 2015, a Russian court found Permyakov guilty of desertion and other charges. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison. He was then handed over to Armenia for trial on murder charges.

Russia maintains a garrison of around 3,000 soldiers at the 102nd Military Base in Gyumri, some 120 kilometers northwest of the capital.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Sign Up for Our Newsletters

Get notified of the latest updates from MassisPost.

You May Also Like

South Florida Community Commemorates Armenian Genocide

BOCA RATON, FL – Last month, hundreds of members, friends, academics, clergy…

PACE Sees Armenian ‘Non-Compliance’ With European Court Rulings

STRASBOURG — The Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) on Wednesday listed…

2015: Where Have we Come? Where are we Going?

By Lucine Kasbarian This article is an edited version of a presentation…

ACA Reports Congressman Hardy\’s Intent to Join Armenian Caucus

LAS VEGAS, NV – The Armenian Council of America (ACA) met with…