Story surfaced on social networks that the Nukus criminal court unjustifiably dropped charges against a police officer put forward by the investigative body, the Prosecutor's Office of Karakalpakstan autonomy commented on the story.

Reportedly, a criminal case was launched by the Prosecutor's Office of Karakalpakstan against the local police officer of Nukus city, A. M. Charges were brought against him for committing a crime under Theft committed on an especially large scale charge of the Criminal Code Uzbekistan.

According to the investigation materials, A. M., in order to appropriate the property of a single man O. E., who lived in his neighbourhood and was declared deranged, wrote a complaint to the head of psychoneurological dispensary No. 1 that he allegedly violated the rules of behavior in society, and got forced hospitalization, eviction from house and house arrest.

Then the inspector forged a warrant for the possession of O.E.’s residential property and, with the help of an employee of the cadastral authority, Ch.S., prepared false cadastral documents and registered the as his own property. Further, according to the gift agreement, he registered the house as his own property.

In addition, the officer used funds from O.E.’s bank card for his own needs. He also convinced bank employees to give him a large sum of money in the man’s account, allegedly to transfer to the owner, and appropriated it. In order to whitewash this money, the inspector purchased aGM Lacetti.

Based on the findings of the investigation, the officer is now facing the following charges:

• Excess of power or official authority causing especially large damage (paragraph “a” of Part 2 of Article 206);
• Production, forgery of documents, stamps, seals, forms, their sale or use repeatedly or by a dangerous repeat offender, by prior conspiracy by a group of persons (paragraphs “a”, “b” of Part 2 of Article 228) and Use of a knowingly forged document (Part 3 of Article 228);
• Theft committed on an especially large scale (paragraph “a” of part 4 of article 169);
• Legalization of proceeds from criminal activities of the Criminal Code of Uzbekistan (Article 243).

In a verdict dated June 7, the judge of the Nukus Criminal Court dropped the charges under Articles 169, 228, 243 and found the inspector guilty only in accordance with paragraph “a” of Part 2 of Article 206 of the Criminal Code. He was sentenced to 2-year house arrest and deprivation of certain rights for the same period.

Charges were also brought against the cadastre employee Ch.S.: under paragraph “a” of Part 4 of Article 169 and paragraph “a” of Part 2 and Part 3 of Article 228. However, part of the charges were dropped from him, he was found guilty only of paragraph “a” of part 2 of article 228.

In addition, by a court decision, the accused was ordered to return 180.5 million soums to compensate for the damage caused by the illegal appropriation of O.E.’s housing on the basis of forged documents.

The prosecutor's office, having studied the documents of the case during the appeal period, recognized the court's verdict as clearly unfounded, unfair and illegal and filed a protest to cancel the court's decision.