DUSHANBE, September 29, 2009, Asia-Plus — Specialists from the Interior Ministry (MoI) say it that cannot be ruled out that aggravation of criminal situation in the country and the currency exchange office robberies are connected with return of many labor migrants home resulting from the global financial crisis, Mahmadullo Asadulloyev, a spokesman for a MoI, said in an interview with Asia-Plus, commenting of the cases of the robbery of currency exchange offices that have become more frequent in the country.
According to him, the murder of employee of the currency exchange office Manouchehr Mirzoyev who was killed in the center of Dushanbe on September 23 has been identified. “The criminal was not going to rob the exchange office because the money remained untouched,” said the spokesman, “His name is not disclosed in the interest of investigation”
We will recall that this incident took place in the center of Dushanbe in broad daylight of September 23. According to the MoI, unidentified persons entered the currency exchange office and inflicted 10 stab wounds on the office employee Manouchehr Mirzoyev. Mirzoyev died on the way to the hospital.
Two currency exchange office robberies were reported in Dushanbe in early summer. On of the robberies took place at the currency exchange office at the Shohmansour bazaar and another one took place at the currency exchange office at the Sakhovat bazaar. In both cases, the assailants killed the exchange office employees and seized large amounts of money.
Since the cases of the robbery of the currency exchange offices have become more frequent, law enforcement authorities are studying the version that organized criminal group is active in Dushanbe, Asadulloyev said.
According to him, members of the organized criminal group, led by Shavkat Safarov, also known as “Shamil,” were detained in Dushanbe in 2008. The ring was engaged in robbing the currency exchange offices in Dushanbe and Khujand and damage caused by this ring was estimated at almost 1 million somoni. At the beginning of this year, the Supreme Court sentenced Safarov to life imprisonment and other members of this ring got long jail terms ranging from 20 to 30 years.
