DUSHANBE, March 12, 2014, Asia-Plus – Russian entrepreneur Andrey Samartsev, who is engaged in investing in Tajikistan’s cotton subsector, accuses Fakhriddin Zokirov, a defense lawyer who had represented the former Minister of Industry Zayd Sayidov, and two other Tajik nationals – Abdulfayz Ibrohimov and Bakhtiyor Davlatov — of large-scale fraud.
Samartsev says he has been engaged in investing in Tajikistan’s cotton subsector since 1999 and he has known Fakhriddin Zokirov since 2007.
According to him, he has invested 25-35 million USD in Tajikistan’s cotton sector annually over the past two years. “All those in Tajikistan who has more than 1,000 tons of cotton know me,” Samartsev noted.
“In 2005, Abdulfayz Ibrohimov and Iranian entrepreneurs launched a cotton-ginning enterprise “Porsiyon-Sufiyon” in the Yovon district. Ibrohimov owned 20 percent of shares in the enterprise. I together with Iranian and Tajik sides participated in assembling the enterprise. In late 2005, Ibrohimov stopped to fulfill his obligations on a contract concluded with me. There were several contracts because the sources of financing were different. In late 2005, I also repaid a loan that Ibrohimov took from one of Tajik banks. In 2006, his debt reached 680,000 USD.”
Samartsev says Fakhriddin Zokirov appeared in 2007 and he represented Ibrohimov in further trial proceedings.
“In 2007, I filed lawsuit in Moscow’s arbitral court, Dushanbe’s Economic Court and Tajikistan’s High Economic Court,” said Samartsev. “The Moscow arbitral court ruled that the Tajik side must pay me 270,000 USD, but Tajikistan’s High Economic Court froze the case in 2009.”
“I have repeatedly applied to Tajikistan’s Agency for State Financial Control and Combating Corruption and President’s Executive Office as well as the then Russian Ambassador to Tajikistan Ramazan Abdulatipov,” noted Russian entrepreneur. “In 2010, I filed lawsuit in Khatlon’s Economic Court. Fakhriddin Zokirov was preparing all materials concerning the trial. The court ruled that 20-percent share of Ibrohimov in the “Porsiyon-Sufiyon” JV should be handed over to me.”
“But it turned out later that Ibrohimov, Zokirov and Davlatov established the enterprise “Paymon-Sipar” in 2009. They falsified documents under which the 20-percent share in “Porsiyon-Sufiyon” that should have been handed over to me was allegedly sold to “Paymon-Sipar in 2009. The court established that no property had been handed over to “Paymon-Sipar” and I finally got the right of ownership. Those persons, however, established a new enterprise on the basis of “Porsiyon-Sufiyon” and named it “Yovon-Cotton” Cotton Ginnery No 288. They pledged this factory to obtain a 1 million USD loan from Tojik Sodirot Bonk (TSB). TSB representatives knew that the enterprise does not belong to Ibrohimov, Zokirov and Davlatov after I showed them all necessary documents. They now owe some 580,000 USD to TSB,” Samartsev noted.
According to him, he knew about the arrest of Fakhriddin Zokirov from the report released by Asia-Plus.
TSB has already lodged an application against Zokirov, Ibrohimov and Davlatov to the Agency for State Financial Control and Combating Corruption and Samartsev has also lodged the application against them. “As far as I know, an Iranian national, who was also deceived by them, has also lodged the application,” Samartsev noted.
Russian entrepreneur is sure that the arrest of Zokirov is not related to his active and robust defense of the former minister in court.
Samartsev says Ibrohimov and Zokirov have tried hardest to blacken him before Tajik law enforcement authorities. “In 2007, they stated that I allegedly masterminded a blast at the crossroads not far from Tajikistan Hotel. Later, they lodged another application to the Tajik law enforcement authorities, saying that I am an agent of Uzbekistan and that I am supplying weapons to Gorno Badakhshan,” Samartsev noted.
We will recall that Fakhriddin Zokirov was arrested by the anticorruption officers on March 7 on suspicion of obtaining a large loan through false pretenses. Zokirov and his partner in crime are charged with large-scale fraud (Article 247 of Tajikistan’s Penal Code).
