Employees of Arinj Mall, owned by Prosperous Armenia party leader Gagik Tsarukyan, staged a protest against the sealing of retail stalls. They are demanding an explanation of the legal grounds on which law enforcement authorities took the action, Sputnik Armenia reported.

On July 20, it became known that investigative actions had been carried out at Arinj Mall, resulting in the suspension of operations at 10-15 stalls.

Employees participating in the protest said the stalls were sealed on a non-working day without prior notice or any formal notification.

"It was a non-working day, and they sealed the stalls in the first row. People came out to protest because everyone is fighting to make a living. A hungry person is capable of anything. We received no answer from Arinj Mall management, which also contacted Armenia's Investigative Committee but received no response either. We went to the Investigative Committee ourselves, but we got no answer there either," one protester said.

The protester said that currently only the first row of the shopping center has been sealed. At the same time, employees voiced concern that similar action could later be taken against other stalls.

"Today this section has been sealed without any justified reason; tomorrow they could seal the next row," the protester said.

According to employees, one explanation being circulated is that the stalls were sealed because they are located beneath a high-voltage power line.

"But the same high-voltage line also crosses the main road. Moreover, construction work is currently underway precisely in the area where the high-voltage line runs," the protester said.

The traders said they would continue demanding a clear explanation from law enforcement authorities as to why the stalls were sealed.

The shopping center's employees attempted to block the road, but police did not allow them to do so.

"You are obstructing the free movement of other citizens. Forget about blocking the road," a police officer said.

Shamshyan.com earlier reported that employees were preparing to take more drastic action, including potentially blocking the Artashat Highway-Sevan road. Police held talks with them in an effort to prevent such a move.

Arinj Mall Deputy Director Armen Nersisyan said he had no new information, but the mall's lawyers were expected to challenge the decision of the pretrial investigation body, Sputnik Armenia reported.

"We arrived and saw that 26 stalls had been sealed, but we have no explanation. Whoever you ask, nobody knows why they were closed. There are different theories, and the stall owners are asking us too, but we have no answer. We told them we do not know what the problem is because there was no notification," Nersisyan said.

Since early morning on July 6, employees of the National Security Service, State Revenue Committee and Interior Ministry police carried out simultaneous searches at more than 70 addresses, including Tsarukyan's residence and companies belonging to him. Tsarukyan was detained. Early on July 7, a court of general jurisdiction for the Avan and Nor Nork administrative districts began considering the preventive measure against Tsarukyan. By the end of the day, it became known that he had been placed in pretrial detention for two months.