Pro-Russian billionaire returned to pretrial detention in Armenia

The Anti-Corruption Court of Appeals overturned a lower court ruling and ordered the return of Russian businessman and billionaire Samvel Karapetyan from house arrest to a pretrial detention facility.

At the end of 2025, Samvel Karapetyan, who was arrested in Armenia on charges of calling for a coup d'état, had his pretrial detention reduced to house arrest.

Karapetyan, who was arrested in June 2025 after speaking out in defense of the Armenian Apostolic Church (which followed Prime Minister Pashinyan's criticism of church representatives), denies his guilt. In addition to charges of calling for a coup d'état, the Russian businessman, who advocates for Armenia's close integration with Russia, is also accused of money laundering through several companies, which his defense considers unfounded.

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