DUSHANBE, May 5, 2016, Asia-Plus – Mahmadali Ahmadov, who is the fourth suspect in murder of top Russian police officer and five of his relatives, says he is innocent.
According to Tajik Interior Ministry’s website, Mahmadali Ahmadov has come to the Interior Ministry in Dushanbe this week and said that he is not guilty to charges brought against him in Russia.
Ahmadov reportedly said that he had known about charges brought against him from mass media. “Mahmadali Ahmadov said that he was not involved in that crime and intends to return to Russia in order to prove his innocence,” says a statement posted on the Interior Ministry’s website today.
Tajik law enforcement authorities say Ahmadov was not detained in Tajikistan because he was not on a ‘wanted’ list and they did not receive request from Russian authorities for detention of him.
According to the Interior Ministry of Tajikistan, Mahmadali Ahmadov flew to Russia on his own initiative.
We will recall that Jaloliddin Sadriddinov, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry of Tajikistan, told
Radio Liberty’s Tajik Service
that if Ahmadov was a Tajik citizen currently in Tajikistan, Dushanbe would not be able to extradite him to Russia because Tajik laws do not allow the extradition of the country”s own citizens.
As it had been reported earlier, Russia”s Interior Ministry said that Mahmadali Ahmadov, who is suspected of involvement in murder of a high-ranking police officer and five of his relatives, was detained at Moscow”s Domodedovo Airport on May 4 upon his arrival there from Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
The deputy chief of staff of the Russian Interior Ministry’s office for Samara oblast, Andrei Gosht, was found dead at his home in the Ivashevka settlement near Syzran on April 24 along with five of his relatives.
Russian federal investigators say three suspects arrested in connection with the murder of a high-ranking police officer and five of his relatives have confessed to the killings.
The investigators identified the three arrested men on May 3 as Roman Fataliyev, Islam Babayev, and Orxan Zahrabov, all natives of Azerbaijan.
On May 2, Russia”s Investigative Committee said the suspects were from Central Asia.
Russia”s Investigative Committee has said that all of the suspects will be charged with murder and robbery.
