(MENAFN- Trend News Agency)
BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 6. The United States is
seeking the forfeiture of a more than 30,000-square-foot
mega-mansion in the Holmby Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles,
pursuant to a civil forfeiture complaint filed that alleges that
the mansion was purchased with bribes paid by an Armenian
businessman to the family of Gagik Khachatryan, a former
high-ranking Armenian public official, Trend reports citing U.S. Department of
Justice.
Gagik Khachatryan, 66, who was known as the“Super Minister,”
because of his significant responsibilities, served as Chairman of
the State Revenue Committee of the Republic of Armenia from 2008 to
2014 and as Minister of Finance for the Republic of Armenia from
2014 to 2016. In the complaint, which was filed Monday in U.S.
District Court for the Central District of California, the United
States alleges that businessman Sedrak Arustamyan paid Khachatryan
and his family more than $20 million in bribes in exchange for
favorable tax treatment of his businesses. The bribe payments
allegedly were used to purchase the Holmby Hills property, which
had been recently listed for sale for $63,500,000.
Gagik Khachatryan and his sons are charged in Armenia with
receiving bribes in violation of the criminal code of the Republic
of Armenia. Criminal charges are also pending in Armenia against
Arustamyan for paying bribes.
This matter was investigated by the FBI's Eurasian Organized
Crime Task Force (EOCTF) and the U.S. Marshals Service. The
Republic of Armenia's Prosecutor General's Office and National
Security Service provided critical assistance. The EOCTF is
composed of multiple law enforcement agencies including the FBI,
IRS-Criminal Investigation, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the
Glendale Police Department, the Los Angeles Police Department, and
the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.
Trial Attorney D. Hunter Smith of the Kleptocracy Asset Recovery
Initiative of the Criminal Division's Money Laundering and Asset
Recovery Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Maxwell Coll for the
Central District of California are litigating the forfeiture.
Tags:
- US
- Corruption
- Armenian lobby
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