The legal team representing Bishop Mikael Ajapahyan, head of the Shirak Diocese, has filed a motion seeking to either lift or modify his detention, citing new legal circumstances in the ongoing criminal case.
According to the defense, the initial grounds and necessity for keeping the bishop in custody no longer exist, and therefore the prosecutor has the authority to revoke or change the court-imposed pretrial measure.
The motion outlines that on July 23, the deputy head of the Department for General and Electoral Crimes of Armenia’s Investigative Committee, V. Mkhitaryan, informed the defense that the preliminary investigation into Archbishop Mikael (Gevorg) Ajapahyan’s case - concerning public calls for the seizure of power and the violent overthrow of the constitutional order - is concluding.
The defense has been invited to review case materials on July 24, 2025.
It emphasizes that since the investigation is ending, the risk of interfering with the process has been reduced to a minimum and was, in practice, nonexistent from the start.
The investigative body believes it has gathered all necessary evidence to substantiate the charges.
Consequently, with the evidence collection phase concluded, the rationale for detention based on obstruction risk has ceased to exist.
The second basis for the detention was the potential for repeat offenses - namely, making further public calls.
However, the defense argues that imprisonment is ineffective for this purpose since communication from behind bars cannot be entirely prevented, as demonstrated by the bishop’s continued statements while in custody.
Therefore, the measure does not meet its intended criminal-procedural objective and instead risks being perceived as punishment for free speech.
According to Article 117, Part 2 of Armenia’s Criminal Procedure Code, “A pretrial measure imposed by the court may be modified or revoked by the supervising prosecutor."
The defense team also proposed alternative pretrial measures to address any residual risks, including bail and a combination of other restrictions in line with the principle of minimal intervention.
On the morning of June 27, about 30 masked individuals raided the Shirak Diocese headquarters.
At the time, Bishop Ajapahyan was in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin for a clergy meeting. He later turned himself in and was detained for two months by court order.
Ajapahyan faces charges of publicly calling for the seizure of power, violation of territorial integrity, renunciation of sovereignty, or the violent overthrow of the constitutional order.