Ghukasian was arrested and charged with bribery last October three weeks after Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian pledged to oust him from “the political and public arena.” He has repeatedly denied the accusation during his ongoing trial.
Against prosecutors’ wishes, a court in Yerevan decided to place Ghukasian under house arrest on the condition that he posts bail worth 15 million drams ($40,000) and pledges not to flee the country. It also banned him from talking to the media. The outspoken mayor has until now been able to answer reporters’ questions in the courtroom.
The house arrest will also prevent him from performing mayoral duties. Gyumri will continue to be run by his first deputy and son-in-law, Avetis Arakelian.
The court order came despite two more criminal charges leveled against Ghukasian last month. In particular, he was charged with plotting to “usurp power.” Law-enforcement authorities have still not elaborated on that accusation.
They already filed last October a similar charge stemming from Ghukasian’s calls for Armenia to form a “union” with Russia while preserving its “independent statehood.” Pashinian decried that “statement against the sovereignty of Armenia.” Investigators unexpectedly dropped the charge in late December.
The fresh criminal proceedings against the 65-year-old mayor coincided with Pashinian’s calls for a fresh municipal election in Gyumri which he said should take place “as soon as possible.” The premier and his political allies accuse the current municipal administration of misrule. Ghukasian’s political team and other opposition forces say that the ruling Civil Contract is simply trying to create an artificial crisis in the city to seize power there.
Gyumri’s municipal council appointed Ghukasian as mayor in April 2025 after four local opposition groups collectively defeated Civil Contract in the last local election. Armenian opposition leaders claim that Pashinian ordered the mayor’s prosecution in a bid to overturn the election results. The premier has denied this.