By Alexander Pracht
Armenian law enforcement arrested Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan on Wednesday after searching his Yerevan home. He has been charged with making public calls to seize power, according to his lawyer Armen Feroyan. Meanwhile Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan publicly called for the nationalization of Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA), the country’s monopoly electricity distributor, which Karapetyan owns.
The search at his home came shortly after Karapetyan publicly denounced the government’s ongoing conflict with the Armenian Apostolic Church. “Since I have always stood with the Armenian Church and the Armenian people, I will be directly involved,” he said in a statement yesterday. “If the politicians fail, then we will intervene in our own way.”
Karapetyan was seen leaving his house in the early hours of Wednesday escorted by police officers. He was initially taken to the Organized Crime Department of the police and has now been transferred to the Investigative Committee.
Also on Wednesday, Prime Minister Pashinyan took to Facebook to call for the nationalization of Electric Networks of Armenia. “I believe the time has come for ENA to be nationalized,” he wrote. “This will happen quickly, and my instruction to all ENA employees is to continue fulfilling their duties in good faith.”
At a press briefing later that day, Pashinyan denied that his nationalization announcement was retaliation for Karapetyan’s statements.
“A month ago, I gave a one-month deadline to identify how to compensate the public for the damages caused by ENA,” he said. “During my regional visits, I was shocked and angered to observe that ENA’s operations had essentially created an energy crisis in the country.”
In a parallel development, Armen Abazyan was dismissed from his post as Director of the National Security Service (NSS), the government announced on Wednesday without being specific as to the reasons. However, several media outlets have linked his dismissal to the Karapetyan case, alleging that Abazyan refused to take part in a crackdown on the billionaire and declined to lead NSS officers in the investigation. Commenting on the matter on Wednesday, Pashinyan replied that the NSS director “could not have disobeyed” his instructions.
The Armenian Apostolic Church issued a statement on Tuesday, condemning the detention and search. “A short while ago, it became known that immediately after declaring support for the Armenian Church, an attempt was made by law enforcement bodies to detain the national benefactor Samvel Karapetyan, and at this very moment his residence is being searched,” the statement read. “We strongly condemn this persecution, which is manifestly driven by political motives. We call upon the authorities to immediately cease these unlawful actions.”
Also on Tuesday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova told reporters that Moscow is paying close attention to the developments.
“In Moscow, we are closely following the situation around Russian citizen Samvel Karapetyan, who is facing what appear to be threats of arrest in Yerevan under questionable pretexts,” Zakharova said. She added that Russia would provide Karapetyan with the necessary assistance to ensure that his rights are protected.
Samvel Karapetyan, born in Soviet Armenia, has built a diverse business empire spanning Russia and Armenia. His ventures include multiple shopping centers, retail chains, and a pizza restaurant chain operating in both countries. Through his Tashir Group, Karapetyan acquired 100% ownership of Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) in 2015, purchasing it from the Russian holding company Inter RAO.
ENA manages the country’s electricity distribution infrastructure that delivers power to consumers.
Karapetyan’s clash with the government comes amid a rapidly escalating conflict between Pashinyan and the Armenian Apostolic Church. Earlier this month, the Prime Minister publicly called for the resignation of Catholicos Karekin II, accusing him of violating his celibacy vow and fathering a child.
The latest tensions began after the Catholicos participated in a conference in Switzerland, where he denounced Azerbaijan’s ethnic cleansing of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh and called for their right of return. His remarks appeared to diverge from the Armenian government’s diplomatic messaging, which has increasingly prioritized quiet normalization with Baku.
