activity, corruption and the financing of terrorism

3.3 Armenia’s capacity to freeze, seize, confiscate and recover assets linked to organised criminal activity, corruption and the financing of terrorism

Armenian national authorities do seek the seizure and confiscation of assets linked to criminal offences, in particular money laundering. Between 2010 and 2014, the national authorities have made use of financial intelligence available at FMC level to suspend and seize funds. During this period, law enforcement authorities have suspended and seized around EUR 647,603.120

However, the Moneyval Committee of Experts considered this mechanism as insufficient in practice, since the Armenian tax authority does not resort to it as often as it should, given the relevant threat posed in Armenia by tax offences.121 One of the main reasons pointed out by law enforcement authorities is the complex legislative provisions which, in turn, inhibit the obtaining of necessary financial evidence.122 Moreover, the lack of a culture of proactive financial investigations in major proceedsgenerating crimes impacts the effective use of available financial intelligence for the purpose of identifying, tracing and preventing IFFs.123 The issue of asset recovery was only very recently brought to the political agenda in Armenia in 2018 and it is very slow to progress. As a result, the legal framework of asset recovery, despite recent legislative reforms, continues to be complex and incomplete. This highlights the necessity of establishing an Asset Recovery Office on the basis of the current framework, equipped with adequate staff and other resources to fulfill its mandate effectively.

Source: Armenian Lawyers’ Association and the CSO Anti-Corruption Coalition of Armenia. Civil Society Report on the Implementation of Chapter II (Prevention) and Chapter V (Asset Recovery) of the United Nations Convention against Corruption. 2020, https://uncaccoalition.org/newcivil-society-report-on-armenia-better-monitoring-anda-more-robust-asset-recovery-framework-needed-toadvance-anti-corruption-efforts/?fbclid=IwAR35x UaWLfFKU3EqrY9AgkPZryo-ejopih0SpPZ-4FnN25 PPftkekdLRohs