Malta Philharmonic principal conductor suspended over fraud allegations

The Malta Philharmonic Orchestra suspended its principal conductor, Maestro Sergey Smbatyan following his arrest in Armenia.

International media reported that Smbatyan, along with his father, Armen Smbatyan, the former ambassador of Armenia to Israel, has been arrested and accused of engaging in particularly large-scale fraud.

The General Prosecutor’s Office alleged that Smbatyan’s actions led to a loss of one billion drams for the state and that the 300-square-meter plot of the Yerevan Tchaikovsky Music School was stolen.

“Without entering into the merits of the case, and without any prejudice to anything or anyone, the MPO was suspending its working relationship with Maestro Smbatyan with immediate effect,” Malta Philharmonic CEO Christopher Muscat announced on Sunday.

Smbatyan was appointed principal conductor of the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra (MPO) on 1 January 2022.