By Aziz Obidov
Copyright qalampir
On September 15, former Minister of Agriculture Aziz Voitov was sentenced to three years of correctional labor. The news was confirmed by Aziz Obidov, press secretary of the Supreme Court.
The Mirabad District Criminal Court concluded the trial of the first-instance criminal case involving the former minister and 62 other defendants. The court has now announced its verdict.
According to the ruling, Voitov was found guilty under Article 167, Part 3, Subparagraph “a” and other provisions of the Criminal Code (embezzlement or misappropriation of property). As the material damage caused was fully compensated, he was sentenced to a fine amounting to 400 times the basic calculation unit. He was also deprived of the right to hold managerial, leadership, or materially responsible positions for three years and sentenced to three years of correctional labor, with 30 percent of his monthly salary withheld as state revenue.
Kh. Karimov, former director of the Agency for Agricultural Services under the Ministry of Agriculture, was sentenced to eight years and six months in prison. He was also barred from holding official or materially responsible positions for three years, under the applicable articles of the Criminal Code.
The remaining 60 defendants received punishments corresponding to their level of involvement. Of these, nine were sentenced to prison terms, while 51 received non-custodial sentences.
“The court’s verdict states that since the damage caused by the crime was fully compensated during the trial, A. Voitov was sentenced to a non-custodial punishment, and the money paid into the deposit account was transferred to the state,” Aziz Obidov wrote.
For reference, Article 167, Part 4 of the Criminal Code stipulates that if the material damage is compensated, punishment in the form of restriction of liberty or imprisonment shall not be applied.
