The Attorney General commented on the shooting in the Khujand pre-trial detention center

On February 13, the Attorney General of Tajikistan, Habibullo Vohidzoda, reported details of the shooting at the detention center in Khujand during a press conference.

According to Vohidzoda, on January 31, three inmates sentenced to terms of 12 to 14 years for terrorist and extremist crimes attacked the staff of the detention center during a walk, using various objects. They also attacked another inmate who was also walking.

The Attorney General stated that the attackers did not heed the guards’ orders to stop the assault, resisted, and posed a serious threat to the life of the detention center staff. As a result, all three attackers were neutralized.

The Attorney General reported that no staff members of the detention center were killed as a result of the confrontation, but the inmates’ attack caused bodily injuries to some staff. The number of injured prison staff has not been specified.

Vohidzoda noted that these inmates had repeatedly violated the regime of serving their sentences in places of deprivation of liberty, which led the court to order their detention under enhanced security measures. They were temporarily held in the Khujand detention center and were awaiting transfer to another prison.

A criminal case has been initiated regarding the attack on the detention center staff, and an investigation is underway.

It is currently not possible to confirm the accuracy of the Attorney General’s statements from other sources, as the Minister of Justice of Tajikistan, Muzaffar Ashurien, previously declined to answer journalists’ questions regarding this incident.

Additionally, Radio Ozodi, citing its sources, reported that on January 31 of this year, eight inmates fatally shot a guard at the Khujand detention center and entered the buffer zone, but other guards began shooting at the inmates. As a result, three inmates were killed. According to the publication, if the inmates had managed to cross the buffer zone, they would have only faced the gates, and they could have escaped.

Furthermore, Radio Ozodi, citing its sources in the health department of the Sughd region, reported that the bodies of three deceased inmates and one injured inmate were delivered from the detention center to the hospital.