The criminal prosecution initiated against Shirak Diocese leader Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan should be terminated, his lawyer Yerem Sargsyan stated at the Criminal Court of Appeal.

“Such criminal prosecution could not have been initiated against Archbishop Mikael, and the prosecution that was launched is subject to termination,” he said, according to Panorama.am .

Sargsyan argued that unlawful initiation of criminal proceedings requires the termination of prosecution if the case was opened on the basis of information obtained from a source not предусмотренный by law.

“This criminal proceeding was unlawfully initiated on the basis of information obtained from a source not provided for by the code. The procedures guaranteeing the legality of initiating criminal proceedings were violated. In other words, the initiation itself was unlawful, and under such circumstances the entire criminal process becomes unlawful,” the lawyer stated.

Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan, head of the Shirak Diocese, was arrested for two months on June 28, 2025, and his detention was later extended.

The court found Ajapahyan guilty under Article 422, Part 2 of Armenia’s Criminal Code. On October 3, 2025, he was sentenced to two years in prison.

By a court decision on February 6, 2026, Ajapahyan’s detention was revoked and replaced with house arrest.