KHUJAND, July 4, 2013, Asia-Plus — Journalist Mahmadyusuf Ismoilov is also suspected of committing fraud.
Investigators say Ismoilov allegedly took 500 somoni from resident of the Asht district for writing article but he did not keep his promise.
His lawyer, Fazliddin Khudoiberdiyev, says he met with Mahmadyusuf Ismoilov on July 3 and according to him, Ismoilov refuses the fact of extortion.
“Ismoilov says he just borrowed 500 somoni from that woman,” the lawyer noted.
Fazliddin Khudoiberdiyev says he has appealed against the measure of restraint chosen for his client, because Mahmadyusuf Ismoilov has two children and the 73-year-old sister with disabilities to keep.
Ismoilov is currently being held at pretrial detention center # 2 in Khujand the administrative center of Sughd province.
We will recall that police detained former regional reporter for the Dushanbe-based independent weekly
Nouri Zindagi
(Light of Life) in Sughd province, Mahmadyusuf Ismoilov, on June 24 following an application by two local women.
The Tajik Interior Ministry announced on June 26 that Mahmadyusuf Ismoilov is accused of demanding bribes from two residents of the northern province of Sughd.
Criminal proceedings have been instituted against Mahmadyusuf Ismoilov under the provisions of Article 250 (1) of Tajikistan’s Penal Code – extortion; an investigation is under way.
It is not the first time police have detained Mahmadyusuf Ismoilov. We will recall that Mahmadyusuf Ismoilov was arrested in November 2010 on separate counts of defamation, insult, and incitement to hatred over an article titled, “Asht Is Being Destroyed. Who Is Responsible for It?” In the article, published in the August 2010 issue of
Nouri Zindagi
, Ismoilov criticized government and law enforcement officials in the Asht district in the northern Sughd province of Tajikistan, and cited corruption, abuse of office, and mismanagement of funds.
Ismoilov who was facing 16 years imprisonment on charges related to his professional activities was released on October 14, 2011. The Khujand court, however, barred Mahmadyusuf Ismoilov from journalistic work for three years, and ordered him to pay a fine in the amount of 35,000 somoni for causing moral damages.
