Revealing the shadowy money laundering through Oktobank, or how journalists are \"hunted\" in Uzbekistan

Revealing the shadowy money laundering through Oktobank, or how journalists are "hunted" in Uzbekistan

In Uzbekistan, information resources that write about the criminal activities of Oktobank, which serves as the "wallet" of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s family, are being massively blocked.

The beginning of the "hunt" on journalists may be related to the attempt at the end of October on former Head of the Department of Information Policy Komil Allamjonov, who unexpectedly resigned at the end of September. Less than a month later, the car in which the former official was traveling was shot at.

Allamjonov was considered a person close to Saida Mirziyoyeva, the eldest daughter of the President of Uzbekistan. The attempt on Allamjonov’s life served as a warning for Uzbekistan’s information resources. If an attempt can be made on the life of a prominent statesman, let alone ordinary journalists.

Saida Mirziyoyeva and her husband Oybek Tursunov, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration, are believed to be beneficiaries of Oktobank, which is owned and managed by the enigmatic Iskander Tursunov, a very non-public figure. There is no interview with the banker or even his official biography available online.

Allamjonov was accused of having a too liberal attitude towards the media, although back in 2022 there were reports that the State Security Service (SSS) was putting pressure on journalists and information resources, demanding them to avoid sharp topics and to delete materials inconvenient for the authorities.

Komil Allamjonov, who was responsible for information policy in the country, did not fit into the "tightening of screws", but this may have been only one of the reasons for leaving the post of Head of the Department. It is unlikely that Allamjonov was shot at for excessive liberalism. Arguments in the form of weapons are usually brought into play when it comes to large sums of money.

Being a member of Saida Mirziyoyeva’s team, with whom Komil Allamjonov worked since 2019, the former official knew a lot about the activities of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s clan, including his protege in the position of Head of the National Agency for Project Management (NAPM) Dmitriy Lee, who was involved in payment systems fraud linked with Oktobank and embezzlement.

That Lee operates under Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s protection is evidenced by the fact that one of the major official Russian media apologized to Dmitriy Lee and his agency after publishing an exposé about them.

The first publications about Dmitriy Lee and Oktobank appeared in spring, with the second wave of investigations into the bank’s criminal activities hitting in autumn.

It’s hard to say whether our autumn publications led to the resignation of Komil Allamjonov. However, he could have been the initiator of the information leak about Oktobank in spring. Besides the credit institution, Capitalbank, the Humo payment system, Uzcard processing, Uznex exchange, and others, as well as terminals of major Russian banks, both state and private, were then implicated in the fraud schemes.

Capitalbank’s owner was previously Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov, a close friend of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, and one of the major shareholders was Oybek Tursunov. Through Berill Holding Company Limited (UAE), he could be the shadow owner of Uzcard, which he previously owned. Furthermore, Tursunov, as of 2021, had shares in other payment systems that might have fallen into the category of "and others".

It is known that in 2021, Oybek Tursunov and Komil Allamjonov planned to create a joint company for vaccine production. This means that their relationship at that time was very trusting. Tursunov is the owner of a whole business empire, yet he likes to play the role of the "Godfather" - acting as an "arbitrator" at criminal gatherings, proving the connection of the president’s son-in-law and his daughter’s husband with the criminal world.

Indirect evidence of Oybek Tursunov’s involvement in the attempt on Komil Allamjonov is the admission by journalists and bloggers that they covered the event dictated by Uzbekistan’s authorities. Allamjonov left his post to transition to a different position, but instead nearly received a bullet to the head.

The pressure on journalists in Uzbekistan who write about Oktobank’s criminal activities, which has long transformed into an international "laundromat", vividly demonstrates the authorities’ connection to the fraudulent schemes.

Recently, journalists received threats via letters sent from the email account of the Uzbek company Innova Holding, a "dark horse". From pressure, Oktobank’s patrons transitioned to openly criminal actions.

Uzbekistan’s authorities feel their impotence since the country’s population widely uses VPNs, allowing information resources to bypass blockades. No matter how hard Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s clan tries, eventually, another investigation into Oktobank’s activities will still lead to Western sanctions.

Ярослав Фокин