Armenia Opposition Leader Detained on Vote-Buying Allegations

Armenia Opposition Leader Detained on Vote-Buying Allegations
Businessman and opposition leader Gagik Tsarukyan votes during a parliamentary election at a poling station in Yerevan, Armenia, on Apr. 2, 2017. Varo Rafayelyan/PAN Photo/Handout via Reuters
Reuters
Updated:

YEREVAN—Armenian opposition leader Gagik Tsarukyan, one of the country’s richest businessmen, was put in custody on Friday for two months ahead of a trial on charges of vote-buying in 2017 parliamentary elections.

Tsarukyan, leader of the Prosperous Armenia party, the second-biggest faction in parliament, denied any wrongdoing, saying the criminal prosecution against him was political.