Samvel Mkhoyan v. Eric H. Holder Jr.

MEMORANDUM

Petitioners Samvel Mkhoyan and Liana Grigoryan seek review of a final order of removal issued by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA). The BIA affirmed the Immigration Judge’s (IJ) adverse credibility determination and denial of their application for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT).

1. Substantial evidence supports the IJ’s adverse credibility determination given Mkhoyan’s implausible explanations for the factual inconsistencies in his testimony and his failure to provide corroborating evidence. See Shrestha v. Holder, 590 F.3d 1034, 1047-48 (9th Cir.2010).

2. Substantial evidence supports denial of Mkhoyan’s asylum application, because he failed to establish that his mistreatment constituted persecution and was on account of his political opinion. Although Mkhoyan was detained overnight and beaten by the police, we have held that single, isolated encounters with the authorities do not constitute past persecution. See Prasad v. INS, 47 F.3d 336, 339 (9th Cir.1995); Gu v. Gonzales, 454 F.3d 1014, 1018, 1020-21 (9th Cir.2006). Further, the evidence does not compel a finding that his political opinion was a central…