Hovanes Ghukasyan, owner of the "Milano" store in the center of Yerevan (Abovyan Street 14), has been evicted in a barbaric manner, without legitimate court decision and compensation for damage. Compulsory Enforcement of Judicial Orders (CEJO) employees accompanied by the police invaded the store, shoved expensive clothes into flour and sugar sacks and took away in unknown direction.    

Hovanes Ghukasyan and members of his family have been evicted form the area and lost the ownership rights for the real estate property.

By its verdict the court obliged Ghukasyan to sign an agreement on "Taking the real estate property for state and public needs and paying compensation for it." 

"The verdict of the Civil Court is illegal first of all from the legal viewpoint and because of that we cannot make an agreement with the purchaser," Hovanes Ghukasyan's attorney Tigran Hairapetyan explains. 

He says that "the legal person", in this case it is Hovanes Ghukasyan's cooperative "Olymp", cannot belong as property to anyone; it is the same as "say, someone declares that the Republic of Armenia belongs to him."

Two years ago, on October 24, 2008, Avetis Karagulian, owner of "Avo FMH" LTD, sued Hovanes Ghukasyan, owner of "Milano", to make him free the area recognized as zone of prevailing public interest. The court without proper notification of Ghukasyan and his attorney and in their absence made a decision in favor of Karagulian.

The Court of Appeals had let the decision of the first instance court stand.

"We have applied to the court several times protesting against the illegal decision adopted in our absence and demanded the recording of the court sitting," Hovanes Ghukasyan says. "However we have been refused; they said the recording was damaged or there was no recoding etc."

When the case was heard at the Court of Appeals, "Milano" area was by Karagulian's demand assessed and then reassessed. Ghukasyan claims that the assessment was incorrect since only 125 square meters of only one floor of the store was examined and 113.975 million dram compensation was offered. He says that for that sum one cannot buy even a small store in the city center.

On December 28, 1998 the state sold to Ghukasyan a 6 meter high two-storied building, the present "Milano". Its each floor is 125 square meters.  The court of first instance as well as Civil Court of Appeals rejected claims of the defense demanding to carry out a forensic-merchandising expertise and assess also the basement and the third floor constructed without authorization.    

Ghukasyan's attorney Haik Alumyan says that even if the judge has not taken into consideration cadastre certificate, he can come and see it with his own eyes:

"Even a blind man can make sure by touching that it is 2 floors. If he was lazy to do that he could have sent someone to check it, and if Ghukasyan has no rights for the building constructed without authorization, then the purchaser moreover has no such right." 

According to Alumyan, "when the decision about alienating the area for state interest was taken, Karagulian and a municipality representative came and drew up a record where the property is described as a two-storied legal building with each floor being 125 square meters."

"But when Karagulian applied to the court he mentioned in his claim that it is a 6 meter high single storied building," the attorney says. "And where was the paper with their signatures? Showing resourcefulness the court, with Karagulian's mediation, gets a letter from the cadastre, that the property is 125 square meters. So they used all state leverages to bereave the man from his property." 

"Haven't you seen him build that third floor? Why haven't you stopped him? And why are you now giving it to the purchaser? If you cared so much about law at least apply it equally," Alumyan says. "I don't want to say without a verdict that someone is guilty but I am inclined to think that this is a case of corruption. Those who grab the property have their personal interests here: the court is a simple menial and he who grab others property dictates them his will."

Hovanes Ghukasyan says he has tried several times to receive the 137 million drams transferred to the court deposit account as compensation for the building but in vain. The court says he has to free the area first but according to the attorney the laws says he can free the area after receiving the money.

This is not the only case when Karagulian manages to take possession of areas recognized as prevailing public interest without paying compensation, by getting necessary documents from the Cadastre State Committee.

The ownership certificate for the apartment at Nalbandyan 5 registered to Karine Margaryan has been falsified. Karine's husband Albert Manijoyan tells that they too have been alienated from the apartment they lived in for 50 years when it was declared a zone of prevailing state interest. 

Karagulian had offered 23,000 dollar compensation to the 9-member family of Manijoyans. And since the apartment was registered only to the wife, by a preliminary agreement Karagulian promised to give some bonus money also to other members of the family.  

"Before Karagulian offered us money we had applied to the court for compensation and in two instances - in the first instance and in the Court of Appeal, a verdict was adopted in our favor.  But in the Court of Cassation the complaint-appeal was overturned, we were offered to sign an agreement and get the money and we agreed," Albert says.

In his words after signing the agreement Karagulian not only did not give the promised money but also showed them another property certificate taken from the cadastre where his and his children's names were written as co-owners.

"He had forged that certificate to avoid paying the bonus money for each member of the family," Albert explains. "Only later I understood that he asked us to sign the agreement for one reason: he expected to get 2 million dollar loan from the state and if there were a case instituted against him, he couldn't get it."

He has sued Karagulian and now lives with his family in his friend's house.

In September 2009 the Government provided a 2 million US dollar loan to Syrian-Armenian benefactor Avetis Karagulian to complete the construction works at the residential building in Kentron community (Abovyan Street 2/5). Karagulian works "under the cover" of RA President's brother, Levon Sargsyan who himself confirmed that fact in one of his interviews.

"It's not only Karagulian, there are some other Armenians from Aleppo that I have brought here, and I say that with pride, it was also my duty of service when I was Armenia's ambassador in Syria. There was a clear task during the terms of the first two presidents, I can even quote president Kocharyan's instructions that ambassadors' work will be assessed by the investments they brought, I too have brought investments to Armenia." 

Hovanes Ghukasyan, owner of "Olymp" cooperative sued "Avo FMH" LTD for violating their rights for the property. The appeal has been accepted. On April 16 Kentron and Nork-Marash general jurisdiction court will hear the complaint of property owners Mryans and Manijoyans against "Avo FMH" LTD director Karagulian.   

Avetis Karagulian avoided answering our questions explaining it by his poor Armenian. Karagulian's attorney Seyran Grigoryan too avoided answering our questions.

Despite illegal verdict, Compulsory Enforcement of Judicial Orders service evicted Ghukasyans from their apartment. The latter turned to the National Security Service, procurator's office and police with a written application on larceny of property, but until now no criminal case has been instituted (see here).

Attorney Haik Alumyan says they do not expect justice from any body in Armenia and are going to apply also to the European Court. He is convinced they will win the case and that consequences will be very heavy for our state.

"They are doing favor to someone at Ghukasyan's expense, they are going to lose at the European Court and Ghukasyan will get compensation, so they are doing favor to someone at the expense of the state," he says.

All those smart guys that are playing tricks on "Milano" have to look at the opposite pavement: there is a man there, Gevorg Chghlyan who too has been deprived of his property but then the state was obliged to pay him 150,000 dollar compensation from the budget to avoid its examination at the European Court. It is clear that if it continues like this no state budget can stand it."

Christine Vardanyan