Tajik ex-policeman Rustam Ashurov has died in Moldova

On July 3, it became known that 43-year-old citizen of Tajikistan Rustam Ashurov, who shot a border guard and a security officer at Chisinau International Airport on June 30, died in the hospital.

“The suspect in the double murder at Chisinau International Airport has died,” reported the General Inspectorate of Police of Moldova on the evening of July 3.

On June 30, at Chisinau International Airport, Rustam Ashurov was denied entry into Moldova while crossing the state border. He seized a pistol from the deputy head of the Moldovan border service at the airport, Sergey Muntianu, shot him and another security officer. After that, he barricaded himself in the airport building.

During the special forces storming, he sustained at least ten gunshot wounds and was unconscious in the hospital under police guard. His condition was assessed as critical.

The law enforcement agencies of Tajikistan claim that Rustam Ashurov is one of the members of an organized criminal group accused of the kidnapping of Shukhrat Ismatulloev, the first deputy chairman of “Orionbank.” A criminal case has been initiated against Ashurov in Tajikistan, and he has been placed on an international wanted list.

The head of the General Inspectorate of Police of Moldova stated that “he is a former police officer of Tajikistan who worked for 7 years in the Ministry of Internal Affairs.” According to him, he was dismissed specifically for criminal activities.

“He committed a similar crime on the territory of Tajikistan in 2013, served his sentence, and was released early from prison,” noted the head of the police of Moldova.

Local media reported the day before that he remained in very serious condition. The Tajik public hoped that Rustam Ashurov would regain consciousness and provide details about the kidnapping and possibly the murder of the deputy chairman of “Orionbank,” Shukhrat Ismatulloev. However, Ashurov took this secret to the grave.

Media outlets have reported on Rustam Ashurov in connection with the kidnapping of the first deputy Khasan Asadullozoda, the brother-in-law of Emomali Rahmon.

It was previously reported that the law enforcement agencies of Tajikistan detained four former employees of the security forces on suspicion of the kidnapping of Shukhrat Ismatulloev.

Radio Ozodi, citing its sources close to the investigation, reports that former officers of the security agencies “committed the kidnapping of the banker together with hardened criminals.”

It is reported that one of the detainees is a former employee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Anti-Corruption Agency. A source close to the family of Shukhrat Ismatulloev reported that “a certain former prosecutor has also been detained on suspicion of the banker’s kidnapping.”