DUSHANBE, March 30, 2009, Asia-Plus — Resident of the northern city of Isfara, Sayfullo Okhounov, was detained in Khujand by local police on March 27 on suspicion of having contacts with the outlawed Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), according to the Ministry of Interior (MoI).
The source at a MoI said that the detainee was an accomplice of a local leader of IMU Anvarjon Qayumov.
We will recall that Qayumov was arrested in Afghanistan on December 28 last year and was extradited to Tajik law enforcement authorities. The arrest followed a December decision by Tajik and Afghan security officials to cooperate in the arrest and extradition of wanted terrorist militants. IMU leader Anvarjon Qayumov was transferred to Dushanbe to face trial for a string of attacks against police forces in northern Tajikistan last summer.
“Criminal proceedings have been instituted against Okhounov under the provisions of Article 187, Part 2 of Tajikistan’s Penal Code – organization of criminal grouping,” the source said, noting that Sayfullo Okhounov had been the accomplice of Qayumov since 2004.
Two other accomplices of Okhounov – one of them was hiding IMU member at his home and the other one was engaged in collecting money from IMU members in the territory of Russia — are still wanted by police, the source said.
The IMU is considered a terrorist organization by the United States and other countries.
