DUSHANBE , June 29, Asia-Plus - Anvar Taghoymurodov, the head of the criminal investigation department of the Ministry of Interior (MoI), has denied report by the Uzbek website press-uz.info that the Uzbek security authorities allegedly arrested Tajik agent in the Surkhandarya region as “unfounded.”

As it had been reported earlier, the Uzbek press-uz.info website on June 16 reported that Murodullo Jurayev, whom they described as Tajik citizen and resident of the Tajik southern district of Shahritus, was detained in the Bandykhan district in early June for violation of requirements of staying in Uzbekistan .  The Uzbek law enforcement agencies claim that Tajik authorities smuggled Murodullo Jurayev across the border for the purpose of carrying out terrorist attacks in Uzbekistan , according to the website.   The press-uz.info website quoted the Uzbek officials as saying that Mr. Jurayev was a convicted Tajik drug trafficker.  In 2000, he was detained for involvement of storage of drugs and sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment, the website said, noting that Jurayev was transferred to deportation and supposed to be released ahead of schedule on June 2006 this year.  In January 2006, Murodullo Jurayev was transported to Dushanbe for conversation with one of high-ranking officials from the Tajik Ministry of Interior (MoI).   According to the website, the MoI official allegedly offered Jurayev to fulfill a special mission on the territory of Uzbekistan in return for money and a promise to not be given an additional lengthy term in jail.

Mr. Taghoymurodov, who alleged to have sent Jurayev on the mission, has said in his interview with Asia-Plus that those allegations are “groundless.”  According to Anvar Taghoymurodov, Murodullo Jurayev is an Uzbek citizen, and at present “he and all his relatives are living in Uzbekistan .”  According to him, Murodullo Jurayev was arrested in 2000 in Tajikistan and subsequently sentenced to a 12-year prison term for involvement in a 1997 coup attempt by Colonel Mahmoud Khudoyberdiyev. 

Mr. Anvar Taghoymurodov says such provocative statements have started after murderer of the head of Tajikistan ’s Military Institute was detained in Dushanbe .  “The murderer proved to be citizen of Uzbekistan and member of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU),” Tajik police official said, adding that at present they carrying out investigation and preparing official response to the allegation of the Uzbek authorities.