On February 25, at the meeting of the Military Court, new sentences were announced to the once high-ranking dignitaries of the country.
Former Chairman of the State Security Service (SSS), Ihtiyor Abdullaev, and his deputy, Jahongir Egamov, received 19 years in prison. In September 2019, they were already found guilty of organizing a criminal community, receiving bribes, extortion, embezzlement of other people’s property, violation of customs legislation on a large scale and other crimes related to abuse of authority. Then Abdullaev was sentenced to 18 years of imprisonment and Egamov – to 16 years. Now one year and three years have been added to their terms.
A milder verdict, five years of restraint of liberty, was handed down in the case of the former Prosecutor General, Otabek Murodov. He was tried under article 210 (“Taking a bribe”) and other articles of the Criminal Code of the Republic. According to the press service of the Supreme Court of Uzbekistan, “The defendant Murodov sincerely regretted the committed crimes and actively helped the investigation. He also fully compensated the damage done.”
According to an ACCA expert, during the investigation, Murodov had to do everything in order to ease his punishment. “He helped providing the most comprehensive evidence base on the alleged and actual acts of Abdullaev and Egamov,” the expert said. “Therefore, it is no coincidence that the court took into account “mitigating circumstances” such as the identity of the defendant, marital status and positive characteristics from the place of residence. This decision looks like grotesque and completely unlike a fair consideration of the crimes of the former Prosecutor General.”
The press service cites the fact that more than seventy victims and witnesses spoke during a closed trial.
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