Gyumri Mayor Vardan Ghukasyan was hospitalized from a pretrial detention center.

Arrested Gyumri Mayor Vardan Ghukasyan was taken to the Armenia Medical Center; his life is not in danger, his lawyer reported.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," in early November, Ghukasyan was transferred from the Yerevan-Kentron penitentiary institution to the Srub Grigor Lusavorich medical center, where he underwent a coronary angiography. The day after his hospitalization, penitentiary officers picked Ghukasyan up from the hospital and took him back to his cell, prompting his defense to declare that Vardan Ghukasyan was denied medical care.

Vardan Ghukasyan's condition has worsened, and he has been taken from the penitentiary to the hospital, the Gyumri mayor's defense team reported on the evening of January 8. Ghukasyan is expected to undergo a court-ordered medical examination at the hospital, Pastinfo.am reports, citing his lawyer.

Lawyer Aramayis Hayrapetyan clarified that Ghukasyan was transferred to the Armenia Medical Center on January 7. The lawyer recalled that the politician "has health problems," but did not specify the exact condition that led to the hospitalization.

"Furthermore, by court order, a forensic medical examination has been ordered, and he must undergo tests. There is no threat to his life, but we will know the full picture after all the tests," NEWS.am quotes Hayrapetyan as saying.

On December 30, it was announced that investigators intend to drop the case against Ghukasyan for calls to renounce Armenia's sovereignty, based on the results of linguistic and psychological examinations. According to lawyer Zaruhi Postanjyan, the investigator scheduled a day for her to review the case materials, stating that he plans to petition the prosecutor to dismiss the case, Panorama.am reported.

The investigator's notice states that the prosecution for calling for the renunciation of sovereignty was unfounded, as Ghukasyan's actions did not constitute such a crime. Ghukasyan's arrest was extended for another three months on December 17, ArmInfo reports.

The "Caucasian Knot" also reported that Vardan Ghukasyan's son, Spartak Ghukasyan, was arrested at the end of November on charges of hooliganism. On December 6, the defense of the elder Ghukasyan filed a complaint with the prosecutor's office and the ombudsman regarding politically motivated intimidation of the politician's relatives. That day, security forces searched Vardan Ghukasyan's apartment, seizing the cell phones of his wife, daughter, and two granddaughters.

Along with Vardan Ghukasyan, seven more city hall employees were detained on October 20. . The search of the city administration building was accompanied by a protest by hundreds of residents who came to support the mayor. The protests escalated into clashes with security forces and attempts by those gathered to prevent Ghukasyan's arrest. More than 40 people were detained in connection with the riots. On December 5, it became known that Gyumri Vice Mayor Avetis Arakelyan, who became acting mayor after Ghukasyan’s arrest, and another official were detained in connection with the riots.