A prosecutor in Armenia has declined to bring charges against two senior security officers linked to the tragic death of Sona Mnatsakanian, a 28-year-old pregnant woman struck by a police SUV leading Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s motorcade in April 2022. The decision raises further concerns about the accountability of high-ranking officials in Pashinyan’s government and a potential cover-up surrounding the incident.
Mnatsakanian was fatally injured while crossing a street in central Yerevan when she was hit by an SUV driven by police Major Aram Navasardian, part of Pashinyan’s security detail. Shockingly, the vehicle did not stop after the collision, and Navasardian, who was charged with reckless driving and negligence, was twice arrested but later released by the courts. Despite facing trial in November 2022, Navasardian remains in his post, as Armenian police chose not to fire or suspend him.
The victim’s family has long suspected a cover-up, alleging that key members of Pashinyan’s security detail have been shielded from prosecution. Their lawyer, Raffi Aslanian, has repeatedly called for accountability, arguing that two senior officers overseeing the motorcade that day failed to enforce the required speed limits and neglected to secure the route properly. Despite these demands, the prosecutor overseeing the case rejected the call to bring charges against the higher-ranking officers.
“The investigation has been anything but impartial, with or without the prime minister’s involvement,” said Aslanian, openly criticizing the handling of the case. He also pointed to a crucial piece of missing evidence: the radio conversations among the security personnel during Pashinyan’s journey. The government has claimed that the recordings were lost due to a “technical malfunction,” a claim met with skepticism by the victim’s family.
Aslanian has vowed to challenge the prosecutor’s decision in court, although he remains pessimistic about the outcome under the current political climate. “We know how things work under this government,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Mnatsakanian family is frustrated by the sluggish pace of Navasardian’s ongoing trial. Mnatsakan Mnatsakanian, Sona’s father, has accused law enforcement authorities of deliberately delaying justice. A recent court session, initially set for August 29, was adjourned until November due to the absence of Navasardian’s defense lawyers, further prolonging the case.
One of Navasardian’s lawyers, Ruben Baloyan, denied that the delays were intentional, even going so far as to shift blame onto the victim for her own death—a stance that has only deepened the family’s grief.
Forensic evidence shows that the police car was speeding through Yerevan at almost 109 kilometers per hour (68 miles per hour), exceeding the government-imposed limit of 100 kilometers per hour. Despite this, Navasardian’s defense team continues to dispute the findings, insisting that their client did not violate any speed limits.
Adding to the outrage, Pashinyan’s motorcade, which included six additional cars, drove past the scene of the accident without stopping to assist Mnatsakanian as she lay dying. To date, the prime minister has made no public comment on her death, a silence that has only fueled accusations of indifference and evasion.
Critics of Pashinyan’s government see this incident as emblematic of a larger issue—a lack of transparency and accountability among those in power. The failure to hold high-ranking security officials responsible for this avoidable tragedy has cast a long shadow over the government’s commitment to justice.
