New details have emerged in the case of the kidnapping and murder of the banker

The Chairman of the Supreme Court of Tajikistan stated that the murder of Shukhrat Ismatulloev was planned and ordered by his business partner Kamaruzzamon Azizov in order to appropriate the share owed to Shukhrat.

On February 15, the Chairman of the Supreme Court of Tajikistan Shermukhammad Shohiyon informed journalists about some new details regarding the kidnapping and murder of Shukhrat Ismatulloev, the first deputy chairman of “Orientbank”.

According to Asia-Plus, Shermukhammad Shohiyon told journalists that in January 2022, Shukhrat Ismatulloev, by agreement between representatives of Shukhrat Ismatulloev and Kamaruzzamon Azizov, acquired 70 percent of the charter capital of LLC “Ikbol-2017” – a construction company for building multi-storey houses.

After the completion of the building and the sale of shops and apartments, Shukhrat Ismatulloev was owed 54 million somoni. Azizov did not want to share, so he planned the murder of the banker in order to appropriate this money.

“Azizov, being dissatisfied with the terms of the contract and in a difficult financial situation, planned to kidnap, rob, and kill Shukhrat Ismatulloev so as not to fulfill the contractual obligations,” said the Chairman of the Supreme Court of Tajikistan.

According to Shohiyon, after the completion of the building and the sale of shops and residential apartments, 54 million somoni was to be paid to Shukhrat Ismatulloev.

Shermukhammad Shohiyon noted that Kamaruzzamon Azizov informed Dilshod Saidmurod (known by the nickname Dilshod SB) that “allegedly Ismatulloev owns cryptocurrency worth more than 2 billion dollars.”

“Kamaruzzamon Azizov and Dilshod Saidmurod organized a criminal group and wanted to use violence and torture to take his money and execute Ismatulloev. Azizov promised Dilshod Saidmurod 1 million 500 thousand dollars for carrying out this plan,” said Shohiyon.

He added that “Dilshod Saidmurod agreed to the proposal and hired Rustam Ashurov, Shokhrukh Khojaev, Bakhtovar Safarov, Toshtemurov, Boyturov, and Hamidov as direct executors and Akbar Akhmedov as an assistant.”

Furthermore, according to the head of the Supreme Court, for the preparation, Dilshod Saidmurod received an advance of 50 thousand dollars from Azizov, and starting from December 2021, began purchasing in Russia and delivering to Tajikistan the necessary items and equipment for the crime worth more than 18 thousand dollars.

Shohiyon reported that on the night of June 23, 2023, at 20:05, Dilshod Saidmurod and other members of the criminal group – Rustam Ashurov, Shokhrukh Khojaev, Akbar Akhmedov, and others took advantage of a convenient moment and forcibly placed Shukhrat Ismatulloev in a car, and took him to the village of Shodob in the Chorbok jamoat of the Varzob district.

“They stripped him of his clothes, seated him on a pre-prepared chair, put handcuffs on him, and under torture, they extracted the codes to the cryptocurrency wallets. After checking, they found no money in these wallets, and to obtain cash and the codes to other wallets, they continued to torture Shukhrat Ismatulloev with a heat gun, laser, and electric shock,” said Shokhiyon.

Furthermore, according to him, after failing to find money, the group members set fire to the vital organs of Shukhrat Ismatulloev and killed him on the orders of Kamaruzzamon Azizov. Rustam Ashurov, Bakhtovar Safarov, and Shokhrukh Khojaev loaded Shukhrat Ismatulloev’s body into the trunk of a car and disposed of it in the river at the 118th kilometer of the Dushanbe-Chanak highway.

The Chairman of the Supreme Court of Tajikistan stated that after implementing the plan, Dilshod Saidmurodov handed over $1,500 to Rustam Ashurov, Bakhtovar Safarov, and Khojaev, and $1,100 to Akhmedov, which they took from Ismatulloev’s pocket, and instructed them to leave the territory of Tajikistan, promising to contact them later and deliver their promised share.

On June 30, 2023, Rustam Ashurov killed two security service employees at Chisinau airport upon entering Moldova. During the operation to apprehend him, he was injured and hospitalized, where he died without regaining consciousness.

Earlier, the country’s General Prosecutor’s Office reported that this group disposed of the body of the first deputy chairman of “Orionbank” in a river in the Varzob district, and his body was found on the riverbank in the city of Penjikent after long searches in August of last year.

Authorities reported the arrest and extradition of Dilshod Saidmurodov from Russia to Tajikistan in October of last year. According to Shokhiyon, criminal cases have been initiated against Kamaruzzamon Azizov, Dilshod Saidmurodov, Akbar Akhmedov, Bakhtovar Safarov, and Shokhrukh Khojaev under articles 104 (murder), 130 (kidnapping), and 249 (robbery).

Ochiliev, Sharifzoda, Maksudov, Sharipov, Ashurov, Akhmedov, Toshtemurov, Boyturov, and Khamidov are accused of collaborating with an organized criminal group.

Shukhrat Ismatulloev was for over 15 years the right-hand man of Hasan Asadullozoda, the brother-in-law of Emomali Rahmon. Prior to his abduction, he was the deputy chairman of the board of OJSC “Orionbank.” Among the bank’s clients, he was known as the chief banker and bank manager.