DUSHANBE, June 24, 2013, Asia-Plus — Known Tajik businessman and former minister of industry of Tajikistan, Zayd Saidov, is now also charged with a large-scale fraud.
The Agency for State Financial Control and Combating Corruption says the new charge – large-scale fraud – was officially brought against Zayd Saidov on June 19, 2013.
According to anticorruption agency’s website, Kazakh businessman Serikbol Okushev arrived in Dushanbe in October 2005 for the purpose of discussing issues related to investment in Tajikistan’s gold mining sector. In Dushanbe, he reportedly met a certain Daler Boboyev and through him he gained access to Zayd Saidov, who was Minister of Industry that time.
Boboyev reportedly submitted documents for carrying out exploration operations at the gold field Chore in the Ayni district for consideration to Okushev.
Okushev, for his part, handed over the received documents for consideration to Kazakhstan’s Turan Alem Bank and received the letter of commitment for 100 million USD from the bank. In January 2006, he reportedly handed over the letter to Zayd Saidov.
A statement released by the anticorruption agency notes that Zayd Saidov allegedly demanded a bribe of 700,000 USD from the Kazakh businessman for permit for exploration and development of the gold field Chore in Ayni. Saidov reportedly received that amount in Almaty, Kazakhstan in February 2006 in the presence of Daler Boboyev.
In June 2006, Zayd Saidov reportedly invited Okushev to Dushanbe and requested 800,000 USD from him. Saidov handed over documents of Tojikatlas, which belonged to him, to Okushev as deposit.
In all, Saidov took 1.5 million USD in bribes from Kazakh businessman Serikbol Okushev, the anticorruption agency says.
“Besides, the preliminary investigation has established that Zayd Saidov borrowed 1.7 million UD from Ukrainian national Ivan Koretsky in May 2012,” the statement by the anticorruption agency said, noting that Saidov has repaid only 300,000 USD to Koretsky so far.
On the basis of the above mentioned, the anticorruption agency officially brought the charge of large-scale corruption (Article 247 (4) of Tajikistan’s Penal Code) against Zayd Saidov on June 19.
Daler Boboyev, was also detained on the same day.
We will recall that initiator of formation of a “New Tajikistan” party, Zayd Saidov, was detained on May 19 on charges of corruption. He has been stripped of his parliamentary immunity. On May 22, a court in Dushanbe’s Firdavsi district issued the arrest warrant for Zayd Saidov. He was ordered held in pretrial detention for up to two months. The court also ruled that Zayd Saidov cannot be released on bail.
The authorities have sequestrated property of Zayd Saidov and his nearest relatives. The anticorruption agency has reportedly sent a letter to notarial service, noting that the property should not be put on sale until investigation complete.
To-date, five cars belonging to Zayd Saidov and his sons as well as their houses have been sequestrated. Working premises and building sites have also been sequestrated but later they have been released.
On June 17, the investigation into the case of Zayd Saidov was classified as “secret.”
Saidov denies any wrongdoing and says his case is politically motivated.
