On February 15th of this year, a horrific murder occurred in the Uzun district of Surkhandarya, where unknown individuals killed a mother and her two children and set fire to their house to cover up the crime. Despite more than 10 days passing, the investigation team has not been able to identify the perpetrators.
According to information received by Kun.uz, the 50-year-old man, Tohir Hayitov, who was taken for questioning as part of the Uzun murder investigation, died in the IAD building.
Relatives of the deceased informed Kun.uz that Hayitov had lived in the neighborhood where the murder took place and was the head of the "Abdusalim Barlos" farming enterprise in the district. As part of the investigation, the IAD officers took all the men from the area, including Tohir Hayitov, for questioning.
“Our house was searched, and my father was taken away. Most people were questioned and released after 3-4 hours. But they held my father for two days, saying an investigation was underway and didn’t allow us to see him. The next day—on the morning of February 25th—we were told that he had died from a heart attack. My father had no history of heart problems and was healthy.
They didn't let us be present during the autopsy, and we weren't informed either. Who did this and why? No one is explaining. There are bruises on my father's hands, face, and body. We believe he was tortured and that an attempt was made to frame him for the crime. My father died in the IAD building.
Recently, members of the national investigative team joined the investigation. When we asked for my father's body, the IAD officers told us it was at a different district morgue. But it wasn't there. After we insisted, the district governor came and said it was at the morgue nearby," said the deceased's son.
Reports circulating online about Tohir Hayitov's death suggest that he had been tortured.
“As usual, the law enforcement officers tried to explain his death by attributing it to a health issue, but according to reports, Tohir Hayitov had been severely tortured for three days while in custody. He had managed to call his relatives and ask for help. However, while his relatives were trying to resolve the issue, he died during the investigation process,” the report says.
During Kun.uz’s investigation, it was found that a court order had been issued for Tohir Hayitov on February 24th. According to the court document, the deceased had been charged with a minor offense (Petty Mischief under Article 183 of the Code of Administrative Offenses) and sentenced to six days in administrative detention. However, the court document itself contained several inconsistencies.
