New details emerge in Shaki shooting: Azerbaijani soldier held children at gunpoint, mother seriously wounded

YEREVAN — New details have emerged about the shooting in the Syunik village of Shaki, revealing that the Azerbaijani serviceman who entered Armenia and broke into a family home held two children at gunpoint before shooting and seriously injuring their mother.

Arpi Avetisyan, sister of 39-year-old Ani Avetisyan, told Azatutyun that the woman’s two school-aged children first encountered Azerbaijani serviceman Nasimi Musaev after returning from school and discovering that the lock to their home had been broken.

After entering the house, they found Musaev in the living room. The children cried out for help, but Musaev seized their phone.

Their mother immediately drove home. When she arrived, she saw Musaev pointing his rifle toward the children and attempted to push the weapon away with her hand. Musaev opened fire, severing three fingers on her left hand and causing additional injuries to her hand and thigh.

After Musaev reloaded his rifle, the wounded woman defended herself and her children with a knife, striking him several times. Musaev then beat her until she lost consciousness. Her 15-year-old son subsequently confronted the soldier and suffered a fractured wrist during the struggle.

Ani Avetisyan is now receiving treatment at Yerevan’s St. Gregory the Illuminator Medical Center for multiple injuries.

The Armenian Prosecutor General’s Office has confirmed that Musaev unlawfully entered the family’s home in Shaki and fired his weapon after being discovered. He fled the scene but was later apprehended in the village.

An Armenian court has ordered Musaev into pre-trial detention. The criminal case includes charges related to inflicting serious bodily harm with a weapon, illegal possession of a firearm, violation of the inviolability of a residence, illegal border crossing and arms smuggling.

Azerbaijan has said Musaev left his military unit in the Lachin area without authorization on September 26. Armenian authorities, meanwhile, said Baku informed Yerevan of the missing serviceman on September 29.

Questions remain over how an armed Azerbaijani serviceman managed to cross into Armenia and reach a civilian community without being detected. Armenian authorities have also not explained why residents in the area were not warned after receiving information from Baku about the missing soldier.