(LibertyInsider.org) – The Justice Department (DOJ) filed a civil complaint in early May 2022 against the owners of a 30,000-foot Holmby Hills mansion in Los Angeles, California, seeking the property’s forfeiture because of corruption allegations against the Armenian owners. On Monday, July 8 of this year, Gagik Khachatryan’s family and the DOJ reached a settlement in the civil forfeiture case.
Khachatryan, 68, served as Armenia’s State Revenue Committee Chairman from 2008 to 2014 and the country’s Finance Minister from 2014 to 2016. Some even called him the “Super Minister” because of the range of responsibilities and powers associated with his positions.
DOJ Seizes $63 Million Los Angeles Mansion Linked to Armenian Corruption Scandalhttps://t.co/dPsK57oTDK
— The Epoch Times (@EpochTimes) July 10, 2024
However, based on an investigation by the US Marshals Service and the FBI’s Eurasian Organized Crime Task Force (EOCTF) with assistance from Armenia’s National Security Service and Prosecutor General’s Office, DOJ prosecutors allege Khachatryan and his sons accepted bribes. Investigators claimed Sedrak Arustamyan, a businessman, paid the minister and his family by repeatedly extending loans of more than $20 million without requiring repayment.
In exchange, Arustamyan sought favorable tax treatment for his businesses. Prosecutors alleged the Khachatryan family used the bribe payments to finance the Holmby Hills estate. Earlier this year, the family listed the house for $63.5 million.
Under the settlement terms, the family will forfeit the home to the US government. The US will sell the estate for the highest possible market price and retain 85% of the net sale proceeds. The government will transfer the balance to Khachatryan’s sons and a corporation they own.
At his discretion, the Attorney General (AG) could transfer some portion of the seized property or the resulting proceeds to any country that participated in the seizure. The EOCTF has recommended that the AG transfer all the proceeds from the forfeiture to Armenia.
US Attorney Martin Estrada said, “We do not tolerate corruption in the United States.” He added that law enforcement officials wouldn’t “allow foreign officials to use our country [for] their own corruption.” The prosecutor said the forfeiture should give worldwide notice to corrupt officials that they won’t find “safe harbor” trying to hide illicit gains in the US.
Khachatrya and his sons are facing bribery and corruption charges in Armenia.
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