Volgograd resident Arsen Melkonyan, sentenced to 11 years in a strict-regime colony for murder, returned home six months after the entry into force of the sentence, writing V1.RU. The sister of the man he killed, citing the Federal Prison Service, reported that the prisoner had taken part in a military operation in Ukraine.
The fact that Melkonyan is not in the settlement, relatives of the realtor killed by him learned about it, because they participated in the trial on the claim for compensation for moral damage to the relatives of the victim. “He was not at the last meeting, it was his lawyer, who confirmed that Arsen Melkonyan cannot be present due to the fact that he is on a special operation. As far as I know, he went there in October,” the victim’s sister said.
Why was Melkonyan convicted?
The story of the murder, in which Arsen Melkonyan was found guilty, was widely covered by Russian media. The crime was preceded by a conflict in the parent chat which erupted at the end of October 2022 due to a Russian language test.
Judging by the correspondence published on the Internet, the teacher insisted on taking the test half an hour after the end of class. The father of one of the pupils, Roman Grebenyuk, 41, described the condition as impossible, explaining that after school the children still have to do their homework. The mother of another student, Anna (Anush) Melkonyan, responded by suggesting that children take the test “on the way to school or at recess”. “The problem must be solved, not chew on the snot,” Grebenyuk replied, asking if there were any other proposals.
An argument broke out between them, which Anna’s husband, Arman Smbatyan, later joined. He threatened to find Grebenyuk and advised him to “take sick leave in advance”. Soon Smbatyan and his wife’s brother Arsen Melkonyan came to the office of Sberbank in the center of Volgograd to meet Grebenyuk.
A quarrel ensued, in which Melkonyan defeated Grebenyuk. The victim was hospitalized, but his injuries were incompatible with life: he died without regaining consciousness. Melkonyan was arrested the next day, his sister and her husband – in November. They were charged with aiding and abetting the intentional infliction of bodily harm resulting in the death of the victim.
Telegram-channel “Volgograd News”
Witness to the beating, who filmed everything on video, said Media that Melkonyan threatened her directly in the courtroom, and the escorts ignored her. In their final words at the trial, Arman Smbatyan and Arsen Melkonyan claimed they did not want Grebenyuk to die and called the incident an “accident”. Anna Melkonyan said everything that happened was brought to court “one-sidedly”, which affects the safety of her two young sons. The wife was sentenced to 5.5 years in a general regime colony, her husband to 7 years in a strict regime colony and his brother to 11 years in a strict regime colony.
As it became known that Melkonyan is not in the colony
Grebenyuk’s sister, Svetlana Vlasova, told V1.RU that the absence of the defendant became evident during the trial in a civil action for compensation for material damage suffered by the family of the murdered person.
On the website of the court that considered the civil suit, it was stated that Melkonyan’s whereabouts were unknown and could not be established.
According to her, the information that Melkonyan left the colony and “is in contact with Ukraine” was also confirmed by the neighbors of the convict, who were suing him because of a personal conflict. Their case was closed due to the statute of limitations.
Volgograd Courts Joint Press Service
Where did Melkonyan go?
According to the Territory of Common Sense telegram channel, Melkonyan accepted participation in the military operation in Ukraine, received a non-fatal wound and was sent to hospital for treatment.
V1.RU correspondents learned from the neighbors of the convict that he had returned home. ” Stay at home. Every day they have a bunch of expensive cars in front of their fence. Rest there, have fun, ”- said one of them. The publication reports that at the time of the correspondents’ visit, “Toyota Land Cruiser Prado, two Mercedes and several other less premium cars” were parked near Melkonyan’s home.
The door was opened to reporters by a young man “in dirty clothes, probably from repair work”, and said the owner of the house was relaxing with friends. A man who came out and introduced himself as a friend of Melkonyan responded to the request to speak. He said the owner of the house was resting and could not communicate with the media.
“Now he only communicates with relatives. Home environment. Better later, in a few weeks at least. You understand what kind of life he has been through for the past two and a half years. Let him rest for the moment, then we will find a solution,” said the man, who introduced himself as a friend of the owner of the house.
According to him, Melkonyan has “an official paper – a presidential pardon”, so “everything, a person owes nothing to anyone, a person rests.”
Roman Grebenyuk’s sister, Svetlana Vlasova, having learned about the return of the convict for his murder in Volgograd, stopped responding to calls from journalists. In a conversation with The Eastern Herald, she declined to discuss the situation.
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