We believe this story will surprise you as much as it surprised us. Ashot Grigoryan, aged 19, does not have parents. Such people in our country as a rule don’t have a shelter and are living as homeless people, just like the hero of this story. In 2004 Ashot Grigoryan was included in a project of Tufenkyan, which was promising and entitled as “We have to live”. In the framework of this project he was suggested to do different jobs in the Saint Hovhannes church of Yerevan. We were informed by the Father Tiran of the St. Hovhannes church that in the future the St. Sargis church had helped this young man too and provided him with shelter and work. It would be better to continue telling about our conversation with the latter after citing the conclusion of the police as the following: “From September 2004 till October 2005 being in St. Hovhannes church, and from October 2007 till April 30 being in St. Sargis church illegally, Ashot Grigoryan has secretly stolen a lot of money. Specifically, from October 2004 till October 2005, on every last Sunday Ashot Grigoryan entered St. Sargis church illegally by using a key made for that purpose and stole money from the depositary of the church, and every time he stole 200.000 dram, and totally he has stolen 2.600.000 dram. From October 2005 till April 30 2007, he used the key made for the mentioned purpose and every last Sunday entered St. Sargis church and stole 275.000 dram every time, and from this church totally he has stolen 23 million dram. On the night of Aril 30, 2008, he stole 212.000 dram and 260 dollar from the depositary. However he was not able to finish the robbery and was caught by the police.”
There are a lot of such stories and it would not be worth publishing if it did not have an interesting continuation.
This young man, who is an orphan, wanted to have an apartment very much and paid the money he had stolen from the churches (63000 dollar) and bought an apartment on Soghomon Taronts street of Yerevan on May 13, 2005 (we don’t want to publish the address of his apartment). “He paid 88.000 dram to buy electronic technical facilities, CDs and recorder,” writes the case. The police have counted the money stolen from the church so scrupulously that they have not taken into consideration the fact that the young man has also bought candies and food with this money.
As we were informed by the case and an employee of Tufenkyan foundation, Ashot Grigoryan is sick. He did not spend any money to get medical treatment even though he had serious health problems. He has body and mental sicknesses, as a result of which the medical conclusion ordered in the framework of his criminal case recognized him as partially capable. Besides buying the mentioned technical accessories he used the stolen money in the following manner: “He donated 10.852.100 dram to 32 citizens, 12 organizations (including 4 churches, 4 schools, one children’s camp, two benevolent organizations, etc.)”.
As Ashot Grigoryan was caught by the police he was sentenced to imprisonment.
According to the verdict of the court of Kentron and Nork-Marash communities of Yerevan dated August 1, 2005, Ashot Grigoryan was sentenced to five years of imprisonment, and the claim of the Armenian Apostolic Church Araratian Branch to confiscate 25.600.000 dram as compensation of loss was satisfied. The court of appeal split this punishment and made a decision to imprison the young man for 2 years and 6 months without confiscation of property. This means that the court of appeals has rejected the claim of the Araratian Church to confiscate 25.600.000 dram as compensation of loss. The last instance of the court left the decision the same, but satisfied the claim of the Church to confiscate 25.600.000 dram as compensation of loss.
Even though we were informed by the Turfenkyan foundation and St. Hovhannes church that the young man is still in prison, according to our calculations he had to be released far before the amnesty was declared. We knocked at the door of his apartment but no one opened the door. Maybe he has sold the apartment to pay a part of the compensation to the church. His apartment was much cheaper than the compensation sum. Furthermore, no one can claim the money he had given for benevolent purposes back. To note, he paid 2.248.911 dram to buy the apartment and 10.852.000 for benevolent purposes. No one would try to get the money had been paid for benevolent purposes.
It is interesting that the bishop of St. Hovhannes church, who did not know that the young man had helped so many organizations and people with the money stolen from the church, said: “It is very good that you are writing about that guy. He is an orphan. Let them set him free. Poor guy…”
However courts are not forgiving. The strictness of the law is just for people like him…