"In Tashkent, a police investigator was convicted, claiming, 'It wasn't a bribe, but a gesture of gratitude.'"

In Tashkent, an investigator was brought to criminal responsibility after being detained with a bribe during an operational event.

According to court documents reviewed by Kun.uz , 26-year-old N.K., who worked as an investigator for the Bektamirskiy district police department, received $500 from a defendant in a criminal case on September 17, 2024, in exchange for not applying a detention measure against him. At that moment, he was apprehended.

In court, N.K. completely denied his guilt and demanded an acquittal.

“I filed charges under Article 276, Part 2 of the Criminal Code and handed the defendant a copy of the ruling on the application of a bail measure. He said he wanted to thank me for the quick handling of his case and left $500. I replied that I was just doing my job and didn’t need the money, but if he wished, he could express his gratitude after the verdict was announced,” the investigator stated.

He received the money in his office.

“The defendant handed me his passport for copying. Money was sticking out of it. Realizing that he genuinely wanted to leave it as a thank you, I took the passport, shook out the money onto the desk, and accepted it. I asked several times if he didn’t consider it a bribe, but he replied that it was just a token of appreciation,” N.K. explained.

However, his guilt was established through witness testimonies, the findings of a forensic chemical examination, and other evidence.

The Mirzo-Ulugbek District Court found N.K. guilty under Part 1 of Article 210 of the Criminal Code. He was sentenced to 2 years of imprisonment and banned from working in the Ministry of Internal Affairs for 3 years.