Former Artsakh Official Found Dead at Armenian Consulate in Saint Petersburg

A former Armenian and Artsakh official was found dead early Wednesday inside the Armenian consulate in Saint Petersburg. Authorities in Russia say the man, Boris Avagyan, likely took his own life after escaping from a courtroom the day before and hiding in the diplomatic mission.

Avagyan served in a number of public posts linked to Karabakh and Armenia. He worked as a deputy chief of Karabakh’s emergency service during and after the 2020 war, and he also served as deputy mayor of the Armenian town of Artik. After he was dismissed in April 2021 he moved to Russia, where he faced criminal cases, including charges of tax or customs evasion that he denied.

The facts reported so far are stark but also raise questions. Russian media and investigators say Avagyan fled a courtroom hearing on Tuesday, went to the Armenian consulate, and later was found dead in a locked bathroom at the mission. 

In a video he recorded hours before his death, Avagyan said he came to the consulate to be sent back to Armenia and complained that Armenian authorities refused to act. The video included these lines as sent by him to a Yerevan-based journalist.

“As a citizen of the Republic of Armenia, I demand that the prosecutor-general of the Republic of Armenia make a decision and send Armenian police officers to carry out my extradition,” he said in the video.

Reactions from people tied to the case have been mixed. Avagyan’s Russian lawyer told the media his client could not have killed himself. At the same time, the Armenian ambassador to Russia publicly described the wounds that, in his view, showed Avagyan cut his veins and bled to death. The acting Armenian consul in Saint Petersburg declined to comment, and there was no immediate public reaction from Yerevan’s official channels.

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