Firouz Kholmurodzoda and Umed Kamolzoda were reportedly fired from the Agency for State Financial Control and Combating Corruption on April 21 for actions defaming honor of officers of the anticorruption agency.  

“Former officers of the Agency for State Financial Control and Combating Corruption Kholmurodzoda and Kamolzoda have been fired for actions defaming honor of Agency officers,” the chief of the Agency for State Financial Control and Combating Corruption, Sulaimon Sultonzoda, noted in his reply to the letter of inquiry by Asia-Plus.   

“The Agency cannot provide detailed information on issues related to criminal proceedings instituted against the former officers of the Agency mentioned in your inquiry until the completion of the investigation,” Sultonzoda noted.  

Recall, more than 10 top investigators and officials of the anticorruption agency were arrested last month.

Thus, a former deputy chief of the anticorruption agency, Davlatbek Khairzoda, was reportedly detained at the airport of the northern city of Khujand on April 24 as he was on his way to Russia.

Among the detained, there was reportedly also Jamoliddin Muhammadzoda.  Firdavs Niyozbadalov was reportedly also arrested.  He was involved in the investigation into the former minister of industry Zaid Saidov.  Saidov’s lawyers and human rights activists had complained that Niyozbadalov used unlawful methods and resorted to physical intimidation during that investigation.

The head of the investigative department, Firouz Kholmurodzoda, was reportedly fired on April 14 and he was detained in Dushanbe on April 15. 

All the people detained are facing charges of corruption, forging document and abuse of office. 

Another anti-corruption agency official, Umed Kamolzoda, is reportedly wanted but does not yet appear to have been detained.

The anticorruption agency chief Sulaimon Sultonzoda, declined to comment to reporters on April 26, saying that information related to the matter is classified as secret.

Meanwhile, Kamolzoda’s father told reporters that his son had been fired but he was at home.