The representative office of Tajikistan’s Ministry of Labor, Migration and Employment of the Population in the Russian Federation is monitoring the investigation into the killing of the 10-year-old Tajik citizen Qobiljon Aliyev in the Moscow Region. This was announced by the Minister of Labor, Migration and Employment of the Population, Ms. Soleha Kholmahmadzoda.
Speaking at a news conference in Dushanbe, the minister said on February 3 that the victim’s family has been provided with a lawyer who is handling the case in Russia.
“The ministry’s representative office in Russia is informed about the investigative actions and remains in constant contact with the relevant authorities. The investigation is ongoing. We cannot interfere in the process, but we are keeping the situation under control,” Ms. Kholmahmadzoda said.
She described the incident as a “deeply tragic event” and noted that from the first days after the killing, representatives of the Ministry of Labor, Migration and Employment in Russia, as well as the Tajik embassy and consulate in Moscow, were by the victim’s mother’s side and assisted her, including with her return to Tajikistan.
According to the minister, the case “cannot leave anyone indifferent.” She added that the ministry’s subordinate institutions, including those in Shahrinav district — Qobiljon Aliyev’s hometown — remain in contact with the victim’s relatives.
Kholmahmadzoda also said that Tajik President Emomali Rahmon and Dushanbe Mayor Rustam Emomali had instructed authorities to provide comprehensive support to the victim’s family, including housing, employment for the boy’s mother, and education for his younger brother.
“We remain in close contact with Qobiljon’s mother and visited her in recent days. I personally spoke with her several times. Regarding employment offers, the family asked for some time to consider them. At present, the younger child is studying at a presidential school,” the minister said.
Relatives of Qobiljon Aliyev have declined to comment to the media, making it impossible to independently verify the officials’ statements.
Qobiljon was killed in a school xenophobic attack in Odintsovo, Moscow region on December 16, 2025. He was stabbed to death by a 15-year-old neo-Nazi identified as Timofey K. Before the bloodshed began, Timofey K. approached a group of children and a teacher at the school and asked about their nationality. He recorded this exchange on his phone and later shared it on Telegram. When a security guard advanced, Timofey K. doused him in pepper spray and stabbed the man before chasing Qobiljon up the stairs and fatally wounding him. The attacker, who had barricaded himself in a classroom, was apprehended by law enforcement officers.
Following the attack, the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation for Moscow Region opened a criminal case under Article 105 (“Murder”), Part 3 of Article 30 (“Preparation for a Crime and Attempted Crime”), and Part 2 of Article 105 of the Russian Criminal Code. An investigation is ongoing.
Qobiljon Aliyev’s body was transported to Tajikistan on December 18, 2025, and buried in Shahrinav district.
The killing sparked widespread public outrage. The Tajik government has publicly demanded an “immediate, objective, and impartial investigation” into the boy’s murder, calling it a crime motivated by national hatred.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan called the crime an act of “national hatred” and the Russian Ambassador to Tajikistan, Semyon Grigoriyev, was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where he was handed a note demanding that the Russian side conducts an immediate, objective, and impartial investigation of this tragic incident and bring all those involved to justice to the fullest extent permitted by law.
Tajikistan's Interior Minister, Ramazon Rahimzoda, demanded that Russian authorities thoroughly and impartially investigate the murder and ensure that the guilty parties are justly punished.
Tajikistan's President, Emomali Rahmon, also raised the issue during his meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on December 22. Putin called the incident a “terrorist attack” and promised that “those responsible will be punished.”
