MIA comments on the case of two men who are tortured during investigation

Law activist Abdurakhmon Tashanov wrote on his Facebook page about the existence of cases where citizens are tortured by investigative bodies.

Doniyor Turakhodjayev, a resident of Chodak village, Pop district, Namangan province, appealed to the “Ezgulik” society of human rights of Uzbekistan. He claims that his 40-year-old brother Dilshodjon, who is suspected of invasion, was brutally tortured. His mouth and hands were tied with plastic tape, and the captive subjected to inhumane torture on April 12-15 in the investigative department of the Tashkent city DIA.

“After the investigation, interviews with lawyers and witnesses, it became clear that Dildoshjon Turakhodjayev was indeed tortured by officers of the criminal investigation department in civilian clothes and investigators in order to obtain a forced testimonial,” the press service of the “Ezgulik” society said.

The MIA spokesperson, Shahrukh Giyasov, said that a large organized criminal group extorted businessmen and kept them under fear. They were previously convicted of serious crimes several times, and as the group members were extremely aggressive, they were arrested with the help of special forces.

“On April 12, 2023, in the course of rapid activities carried out by the MIA Department for Combating Organized Crime, the Tashkent city police department, the Namangan regional police department, and the SSS in Tashkent city and the Namangan region, criminal group members have been extorting businessmen and keeping them under fear for several months. 10 members of the large organized criminal group were arrested.

Taking into account that the group members have been convicted of serious crimes several times and are extremely aggressive, they were arrested and neutralized with the involvement of MIA special forces. 2 specially prepared sharp-edged objects, several scotch tapes, field uniforms of internal affairs officers, rubber gloves, 0.7 grams of opium, tramadol tablets and a sports bag were seized from them as evidence. 

Currently, a criminal case has been initiated under Article 164 of the Criminal Code. The suspects are being investigated for their involvement in a number of other serious crimes. All are provided with protection in the established order,” the official statement reads.

At the same time, Abdurakhmon Tashanov stated that another man was tortured in the penitentiary and published photos of both cases.

“As a result of the torture of 29-year-old Khasanboy Abdunabiyev, who was detained in Tashkent penal institution on suspicion of committing a crime under Article 251 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan, he became almost disabled. The damage caused to his body by the electroshock device is also reflected in the pictures you are viewing. The wounds on his body still exist,” the human rights activist said.

In the official report announced by the MIA press secretary, it is stated that the alleged torturer resisted during the arrest, and because of this, the special services used physical force against him, and the bruises on the man’s body was complicated by this.

“On April 6 of this year, the Anti-Smuggling Department of the Customs Committee and the State Security Service arrested the citizen Kh.A. who illegally possessed highly toxic substances in Tashkent. Due to strong resistance during the arrest, the special services arrested him using physical force.

Currently, a criminal case has been opened against the suspect under Part 3, Article 251-1 of the Criminal Code. His involvement in other serious crimes is being investigated. The suspect is provided with procedural protection,” the statement said.

In the photos published by Abdurakhmon Tashanov, traces left by an electric shocker on the body of Khasanboy Abdunabiyev are clearly visible.

“Ezgulik” society relied on the lawyers of the alleged victims of torture and said that there are attempts to hide these violations, and called on the PGO to conduct a thorough investigation of the above cases and make a legal assessment of the activities of the National Preventive Mechanisms Group against Torture.

Shohrukh Giyasov said that in both cases, the suspects were regularly engaged in sports, had previously participated in various street fights. There are now reports that social media is being used to promote mistrust and unhealthy hype about law enforcement by promoting pre-existing injuries through third parties. He added that the prosecutor’s office is investigating each case.