ArmInfo. The State Revenue Committee of the Republic of Armenia (SRC) has received information regarding possible cases of tax evasion, understatement of sales volumes, and reduction of tax liabilities through fictitious (non-commodity) transactions by business entities operating in the construction materials sector.
According to the SRC press service, to verify the information received, employees of the relevant department of the Committee conducted covert surveillance, during which they established the routes of trucks leaving the cement plant in the Ararat region, identified their license plates, and identified the delivery destinations. The obtained data was compared with tax invoices issued by the company, as well as with information contained in tax authority databases. This comparison allowed us to establish the true scale of the violations. Specifically, surveillance revealed that 101 trucks left the plant's premises in one day, but no tax invoices were issued for 35 of the deliveries. Thus, in just one day, approximately 43.2 million drams worth of cement were delivered without the necessary payment documents, resulting in approximately 7.2 million drams of VAT not being credited to the state budget. Investigative measures were also carried out on the company's deliveries.
Based on the analysis and comparison of the obtained factual data, reasonable suspicions arose that the purchase of diesel fuel worth approximately 1.2 billion drams was processed using presumably fictitious (non-commodity) tax invoices. These documents were subsequently used to offset value-added tax and reduce the profit tax base. These actions resulted in damages to the state in the amount of approximately 442 million drams. During the comprehensive investigative operations, possible tax violations were also uncovered in the activities of another company, owned by the same owner and engaged in concrete production in Yerevan and the Kotayk region. It was established that the company failed to reflect the sale of concrete worth approximately 73 million drams in tax records, resulting in damages to the state of over 23 million drams. Furthermore, evidence was obtained indicating that the company had made presumably fictitious (non-commodity) purchases totaling approximately 49 million drams, which, according to preliminary data, resulted in additional damages to the state of approximately 23 million drams. Based on these findings, criminal reports were submitted to the criminal investigation body. Criminal proceedings have been initiated on these facts and a preliminary investigation is underway.
The Ararat Cement plant is owned by Armenian businessman and politician Gagik Tsarukyan. On July 6, Tsarukyan's leader was detained and taken to the Investigative Committee of Armenia. He is accused of organizing fraud and money laundering on an especially large scale. According to investigators, between 2022 and 2024, a group operating under his leadership created joint legal entities with Iranian citizens under the pretext of developing trade and economic ties between Armenia and Iran, after which they carried out a fraudulent scheme, causing damages totaling over $21 million. Furthermore, Gagik Tsarukyan faces another charge of illegal hunting. On July 7, the court granted the prosecution's motion to remand Tsarukyan in custody for two months.
Following Tsarukyan's detention, high-profile events began to unfold around the plant. The plant's operations were temporarily suspended. Against this backdrop, due to the risk of production shutdowns, the appointment of an interim manager was considered, but the plant resumed normal operations days earlier. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had previously announced his intention to nationalize the plant, following the example of the Electric Networks of Armenia, which is owned by renowned philanthropist, entrepreneur, and leader of the Strong Armenia party, Samvel Karapetyan.
