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The Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction issued Wednesday a ruling on extension of the owner of the Fifth Channel Armen Tavadyan’s pre-trial arrest sought by the Special Investigative Service (SIS). As the lawyer of Tavadyan, Aram Orbelyan, told Panorama.am, the court granted the petition filed by prosecutors. Meanwhile, the lawyer’s petition to release Tavadyan on bail was rejected.

As Orbelyan informed, the court decision has not been handed to the defense team yet. After receiving the decision, the lawyer will decide on appealing the case. Orbelyan reiterated the opinion that the pre-trial custody for Tavadyan is unsubstantiated, considering also the fact that over the past two months of the arrest only 10-11 investigative actions had been carried out by a group of 4-5 investigators.

To remind, Armenia’s Special Investigation Service (SIS) arrested Tavadyan in December on suspicion of seeking false testimony in favour of Armenia’s jailed former President Robert Kocharyan. At the motion filed by the prosecutors, the Court chose arrest as detention measure for him. Later number of media organisations and the journalists of the Fifth Channel issued a statement, insisting the criminal prosecution against the owner of opposition TV channel resembled an act of political vendetta against the businessman for his personal relationships.

The statement said that the arrest of the owner of a TV company was a ‘disgraceful example of phycological and financial pressure exerted on the Fifth Channel.”