Tajik law enforcement authorities have completed criminal proceedings instituted against the 18-year-old son of a former police colonel, who joined Islamic State (IS) terror group, and the case has gone to trial.
An official source at the Tajik law enforcement authorities says criminal proceedings have been instituted against Behrouz Halimov under the provisions of two articles of Tajikistan’s Penal Code: Article 32 – preparation for crime; and Article 401 – mercenary activities.
According to the source, the investigation has established that that Behrouz Halimov was keeping in touch with his father Gulmurod Halimov and was going to travel from Moscow to Iraq or Syria to join the IS terrorist group.
Behrouz Halimov was reportedly arrested at the Dushanbe airport on April 17 this year while boarding the Dushanbe-Moscow flight.
According to some data, Behrouz Halimov finished secondary school in his native village of Darai Fon in Varzob district last year and was engaged in small trade.
Meanwhile Radio Liberty’s Tajik Service reported last month that Behrouz Halimov’s relatives told RFE/RL’s Tajik Service on April 17 that he was detained three weeks ago and is being held incommunicado.
They said they have received no explanation of the arrest, which could not be independently verified, according to RFE/RL’s Tajik Service.
Recall, Colonel Gulmurod Halimov was commander of the Tajik special police unit, known as OMON.
He went missing in April 2015 and later appeared on the Internet, saying he had joined the IS group.
Last August, the U.S. State Department called Halimov a key member of the IS extremist group and offered a $3 million reward for information on his whereabouts.
Western media reports quoted Iraqi officials on April 14 as saying that Gulmurod Halimov was killed in an air strike in Mosul.
