Hetq In 2022, the Speaker of the National Assembly, Alen Simonyan, bought an apartment in the “Byuregh” residential district under construction on Arshakunyats Avenue, Yerevan. We learn about this from Alen Simonyan’s 2022 annual declaration of property and income.
Let’s remind: “Byuregh” residential district is being built by “Jermuk Group” CJSC, owned by former RPA deputy Ashot Arsenyan. Arsenyan now has close ties with the representatives of the government. His son, Vahagn Arsenyan, on the list of the ruling “Civil Agreement” party in 2021. became the mayor of Jermuk.
As stated in the statement of the Speaker of the National Assembly Alen Simonyan, he lent 53 million 920 thousand drams to “Jermuk Group” CJSC during 2022, which is, it can be said, the value of the apartment purchase transaction. For the purchase of an apartment, Alen Simonyan and his wife, Mariam Margaryan, took a mortgage loan from “Armeconombank” belonging to the family of businessman MP Khachatur Sukiasyan, the amount of the loan was 48 million 325 thousand drams. The amount was declared as income received in the accounting year.
In the 2022 income, Alen Simonyan also declared 7 million drams received from Ana Giorgi as rent payment. Alen Simonyan, as the chairman of the National Assembly, received a salary of 14 million 406 thousand drams last year. In the income section, the Speaker of the National Assembly also mentioned the 374 thousand drams received from Narek Mantashyan, co-chairman of “Alternative” NGO. That is the amount that the court obliged Mantashyan to compensate for insulting and slandering Simonyan.
Alen Simonyan declared 585,000 AMD and 705 USD in his bank accounts in the cash section. And as cash, the Speaker of the National Assembly declared 24 million 65 thousand drams.
Alen Simonyan has declared the apartment in the center of Yerevan, which he owns as a sole proprietorship, acquired in 2019, as real estate. The Speaker of the National Assembly did not declare vehicles.
Alen Simonyan’s wife, Mariam Margaryan, mentioned in her declaration the apartment purchased in 2014 in the center of Yerevan, and as a means of transport, the Land Rover of 2021, purchased in 2021.
As we already mentioned, Alen Simonyan and Mariam Margaryan took a loan of 48 million drams from “Armeconombank” to buy an apartment in “Byuregh” residential district. Among other incomes, the NA Speaker’s wife mentioned $159 from “Armeconombank” as interest or other compensation, a loan from “Ameriabank” in the amount of 726 thousand drams, as well as wages from “Free News” LLC in the amount of 11 million 285 thousand drams and “Efemef Group” ” from LLC in the amount of AMD 8 million. In “Free News” LLC, which represents the media of the same name, Mariam Margaryan holds the position of director, and in “Efemef Group” she, in addition to being a director, is also the owner of 100 percent of shares. According to the SRC data, that company is involved in the production of video films and television programs.
At the beginning of the year, Mariam Margaryan stated 159 dollars and 36 thousand drams as non-cash amount, which were no longer there at the end of the year, and the NA Speaker’s wife declared 2100 dollars and 2.5 million drams in cash.
Let us add that Alen Simonyan is not the only representative of the government who buys an apartment in the “Byuregh” residential district. Earlier, “Hetk” wrote that Minister of Defense Suren Papikyan bought an apartment in that district several times lower than the market price.
The head of the Prime Minister’s Office Arayik Harutyunyan and the Ambassador of Armenia to the USA Lilit Makunts also bought an apartment in the “Byuregh” district. These data appear in their declarations. Khachatur Sukiasyan’s “Armeconombank” provided loans to these officials in all the mentioned cases.