The Military Court of the Republic of Uzbekistan has delivered a verdict in the case involving Taftish.uz staff and former State Security Service employees. Human rights activist Abdurakhmon Tashanov reported this on September 24.
Taftish.uz editor-in-chief Gayrat Aberayev was sentenced to 10.6 years in prison, while journalist Marjona Eshquvvatova was sentenced to 4.1 years. Two other editorial staff members and former SSS employees received sentences of more than 10 years.
According to Tashanov, the defendants were charged with defamation, insult, fraud and extortion. The trial was held behind closed doors. Those convicted will serve their sentences in general-regime correctional colonies.
Taftish.uz staff detained in January
Taftish.uz staff members were detained in Tashkent on January 16, 2026. The Tashkent City Department of Internal Affairs reported the detention of Gayrat Aberayev, Azizjon Yuldashev, Sardor Khamidov, Marjona Eshquvvatova and Dilshod Nishonov.
According to the Tashkent City Department of Internal Affairs, the detainees were suspected of crimes under Articles 165 and 168 of Uzbekistan’s Criminal Code — extortion and fraud. Their possible involvement in defamation and the dissemination of false information was also being investigated.
The Tashkent City Department of Internal Affairs separately stated that reports about the closure of Taftish.uz were untrue and that the publication continued operating.
At the time of this article, the publication’s website is accessible, although its latest article was published on January 13, 2026.
Interior Ministry allegations against Taftish.uz
On January 17, the Interior Ministry published a detailed statement on the investigation (the image of the post is a screenshot from an official Uzbek Interior Ministry video about Taftish.uz). The ministry alleged that individuals linked to Taftish.uz had used journalistic activity for extortion and fraud.
According to the Interior Ministry’s version of events, materials were published on social media and video platforms that, the ministry alleged, humiliated the honor and dignity of citizens or discredited businesspeople and officials. Following the publications, according to the ministry, money was demanded in exchange for removing the materials.
The ministry identified Gayrat Aberayev as the central figure and described him as the leader of the group.
The Interior Ministry also listed several incidents that it linked to the group’s activities. These included publications concerning the management of a shopping complex in Tashkent’s Chilanzar district, a family in Chust district of Namangan Region, the construction company Parkent Development in Tashkent, and the company Oʻzbegim uylari in Samarkand Region.
The Interior Ministry’s official statement did not include comments from the detainees, their lawyers or representatives of Taftish.uz.
More than 400 complaints and transfer of the case to the Military Prosecutor’s Office
In April 2026, Abdurakhmon Tashanov reported that the investigation was being conducted by military investigators and that the case materials had been transferred to the Military Prosecutor’s Office.
According to him, more than 400 complaints from citizens against the Taftish.uz team had been reviewed by that time.
“More than 400 complaints from citizens against the website’s team have been reviewed so far,” Tashanov said.
The human rights activist also said that several SSS employees were among the defendants, which was why the case had been transferred to the Military Prosecutor’s Office. According to him, parts of the investigation were conducted behind closed doors, and the trial was also highly likely to be closed.
Tashanov separately stated that “without respecting the presumption of innocence, investigation secrets were disclosed immediately after the arrests, and the website team was subjected to virtual punishment.”
Other criminal cases involving journalists and bloggers
The Taftish.uz case developed against the backdrop of other criminal cases involving journalists and bloggers.
In January, a case was reported involving journalist Elyor Tojiboev. The charges against him included defamation, insult, extortion, resistance to a representative of the authorities and dissemination of false information. On January 20, 2026, the Margilan City Criminal Court found journalist Elyor Tojiboev guilty under several articles of Uzbekistan’s Criminal Code and sentenced him to four years in prison, to be served in a high-security correctional colony.
In Urgench, the head of the Qonun doirasida project, Furkat Ruzmetov, and editorial staff member Azamat Avezov were taken into custody. The charges against them also included defamation and extortion.
In Tashkent, a criminal case was opened against Fazlidinkhon Mekhmonov, head of the online publication Demokrat.uz, and blogger Aziz Goipnazarov. They were accused of demanding $50,000 from the owner of a car dealership in exchange for removing a video and refraining from further publications.
A separate case was reported involving blogger Sherali Komilov, who spent 17 months in custody. As reported by Tashanov, after his release he was acquitted of the extortion charges and a fraud-related episode.
Sergey Mayorov on the prosecution of bloggers
Attorney Sergey Mayorov also spoke about the prosecution of bloggers and journalists at a roundtable organized by the Russian publication Ridus in the summer of 2026. In response to a question about cases involving bloggers, Mayorov spoke about what, in his observation, happens to bloggers who openly discuss shortcomings in the work of government authorities.
“Bloggers who are disliked are those who openly talk about shortcomings in particular cases, in cities, in government agencies and in events that simply interest the public. Unfair actions by government authorities,” he said.
Mayorov went on to say that such bloggers may be accused of crimes unrelated to their blogging activities: “Either they are accused of fraud, or they may face some sexual allegations, or other crimes, but in no way related to their blogging activities.”
