13:45 18.02.2013

Tajikistan asks Ukraine to extradite ex-premier Abdullajanov

2 min read

The Prosecutor General's Office of Tajikistan has sent official documents to Kyiv that are needed for the extradition of former Tajik Prime Minister Abdumalik Abdullajanov who is accused of a number of serious crimes committed in Tajikistan, a representative of the prosecutor's office told Interfax-Ukraine on Monday.

The prosecutor's office said that the documents contained enough evidence of the former prime minister's guilt for his extradition.

"We have collected and sent all of the necessary documents required for a formal request for the extradition of citizen of Tajikistan Abdumalik Abdullajanov to his homeland to our Ukrainian colleagues," he said.

"In our opinion, the evidence of Abdullajanov's guilt reflected in the documents is enough to extradite him for a fair trial in his homeland," he added.

As reported, Abdullajanov was detained at Kyiv Boryspil International Airport on February 5, after he arrived on a flight from Los Angeles.

On February 7, Boryspil court (Kyiv region) granted a request by the prosecutor's office for the temporary arrest of Abdullajanov for forty days.

According to Interpol, Abdullajanov is wanted by Tajikistan's law-enforcement agencies for large-scale embezzlement, racketeering, participation in organized criminal groups, and attempts to organize a revolution, among other charges.

Abdullajanov, 64, was born in Khujand. He graduated from Odesa Technological Institute.

In Soviet times he worked for the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic government.

In September 1992 he was appointed as Tajik Prime Minister. He resigned from the post in 1993 and was appointed Tajik Ambassador to Russia.

In 1994 he nominated himself in the first presidential elections in Tajikistan. According to official data, he lost the elections to the current President of Tajikistan Emomalii Rahmon. After the election, he left for Russia and in 1998 he moved to the United States.

The Tajik authorities accuse Abdullajanov of organizing an attempt to assassinate Rahmon on April 30, 1997, when the president was wounded in the leg. The ex-premier has rejected the accusations in interviews.

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