Man arrested in Tajik north on suspicion of spying for Uzbekistan

The law-enforcement officers of Tajikistan's [northern] Sughd Region have detained Qurbonali Tabarov, resident of the town of Chkalovsk, on charges of spying for Uzbekistan, fraud and misappropriation, a source at the press centre of the Tajik State National Security Committee's directorate for Sughd Region has told Ferghana.ru.

The source said Qurbonali Tabarov had forged his ID and other documents and posed as a retired colonel-general of the state security bodies and the head of the Interpol directorate in Central Asia and Eurasia. This helped him to find a good job and earn money.

When Tabarov's flat was searched, a colonel-general's parade uniform was found there, though he served nowhere, and he also possessed a Hero of Soviet Union certificate. Tabarov put on his uniform to attend various events in Tajikistan.

Qurbonali Tabarov had lived in Uzbekistan for a long time. He illegally crossed the Tajik-Uzbek border for several times, using his fake documents.

According to information from the Tajik special services, Qurbonali Tabarov kept in contact with Uzbek law-enforcement officers and delivered important data to them.

[Passage omitted: four senior workers of a Tajik precious metals plant were arrested this July on suspicion of spying for Uzbekistan]

Source: Ferghana.ru news agency website in Russian 1254 gmt 28 Sep 09

BBC Mon FS1 FsuPol sa/mio

Related terms: law enforcement, money, plant, precious metals, russia, security, tajikistan, unions, uzbekistan