On 3 February, Armenia's former Prosecutor General Gevorg Kostanyan stated that he was ready to return to Armenia from Russia and publicly answer all the questions regarding the 1 March criminal case, reported arka.am. 

In November 2019, Armenia's law-enforcement authorities gave him 48 hours to appear before the Special Investigative Service (SIS). Kostanyan, who was in Russia, ignored the request and the SIS put him on its most-wanted list.

“Although the charges brought against me are devoid of any legal, logical and substantive basis, I express my readiness to return to Armenia and answer all the questions of the investigation body. I propose that a live public discussion be organized with the Prime Minister of Armenia [Nikol Pashinyan] or with his direct participation, also with the participation of the head of the Special Investigation Service and the Prosecutor General, legal scholars and international experts," Kostanyan said in a statement.

He said that he is not an advocate of public discussions of criminal cases, but his demand has two reasons, the first being the one-sided publication of the 1 March case, including how Armenian authorities presented the case on international platforms and secondly, with the current working style of law enforcement bodies. He insisted that representatives of the Council of Europe and the European Union, as well as foreign ambassadors to Armenia, be invited and participate in the discussion.

“If during that discussion the law enforcement authorities succeed in presenting at least one [piece of] evidence justifying the charges against me, I’m ready to bear the full criminal responsibility. After clarifying the date, time, place and format I promise to come back to Armenia one day before the discussion," Kostanyan said.

Responding to Kostanyan's statement, the Special Investigative Service said that it found it strange that Kostanyan, who has worked as prosecutor general, put forward an unrealistic proposal and insists on public hearings on a criminal case knowing very well that this proposal can be considered as another reason to defy the summon.   

As for Kostanyan's readiness to help disclose the circumstances surrounding the killing of ten people on 1 March, the investigator service said that he has already had this chance when he was summoned as a witness.  "However, if he is sincere in his intentions to assist in the criminal case investigation, the Special Investigative Service is urging him again to come and provide information to the investigative agency in the frames set by the law without staging public performances and making declarations," the Special Investigative Service said in its statement.

Kostanyan is charged with falsification, inciting to commit misconduct, inciting to commit falsification, inciting to conceal grave crime and inciting to falsify evidence on crimes in the 1 March 2008 case, where 10 people were killed during the protests in Yerevan over an alleged fraud during the presidential elections in the country.