Uzbekistan: The head of the Internal Affairs Department was arrested for concealing crimes
“Special services officers arrested the head of the Internal Affairs Department of Mubarek district Khojanazar Bakhriev,” the Prosecutor’s Office of Kashkadarya region reported. Evidence that was obtained during the analysis of the Department’s documents for February 7–10, 2022 testifies to his guilt.
“In the course of the study, a number of shortcomings were revealed in the pre-trial investigative and operational-search activities of the District Internal Affairs Department. Hidden from accounting are such crimes as theft, hooliganism, robbery and fraud,” states the supervisory authority.
The officer is also suspected of conspiring with the former deputy head of the administration of Mirishkor district of Kashkadarya region, Umid Yakhshiev. He was caught red-handed when he received a bribe of $50,000. An investigation has been launched against the official under two articles of the Criminal Code at once.
On February 6, the Prosecutor’s Office opened a criminal case against the deputy hokim for fraud on an especially large scale and complicity in giving a bribe on an especially large scale. For $80,000, he promised to help through acquaintances in allocating 1,000 hectares of land to create a cattle-breeding cluster. Yakhshiev, being in the personnel reserve of the Internal Affairs bodies, committed a crime in collusion with the head of the Department of Internal Affairs of Mubarek district.
Earlier, ACCA wrote that in comparison with 2020, the number of crimes in the system of the Ministry of Internal Affairs has almost doubled and amounted to 119 episodes. Of the almost five thousand appeals received by the Anti-Corruption Agency in 2021, 7% reflected dissatisfaction with the actions and decisions of the Ministry’s employees. Law enforcement officers were charged under articles related to abuse of office, forgery, fraud, giving and receiving bribes.
