DUSHANBE, May 6, 2013, Asia-Plus – Two border guards have been detained over the death of teenager in the Darvoz district, Gorno Badakhshan Autonomous Region (GBAO).

Galimat Akhmedov, who is providing legal assistance to the injured party, told Asia-Plus today that two servicemen of the border unit deployed in Qalai Khumb, the administrative center of Darvoz district have been arrested on suspicion of involvement in the death of Parviz Vazirbekov.

According to him, investigators from the military prosecutor’s office at the Khorog garrison are investigating the incident.

“The investigators are inclined to believe that in order to avoid disclosure of illegal fuel trade, the soldiers hid the teenager in a near-empty gas tank, where he was suffocated by gasoline vapors,” said the lawyer.  “To conceal the vestiges of their crime, the soldier threw the teen’s body into the Panj River.”

We will recall that Radio Liberty’s Tajiks Service reports that Parviz Vazirbekov, an 8th grade student from School # 1 in the Darvoz district, died under strange circumstances on May 1.

Saidbek Ahmadbekov, an immediate relative of Parviz Vazirbekov, told ARFE/RL that Parviz’s body has not been found yet.

According to him, Parviz was providing servicemen of the border unit deployed in Qalai Khumb with SIM-cards, mobile phones and other things in exchange for gasoline.

Saidbek said Parviz has been missing since the evening of May 1.  “Probably, soldiers asked Parviz to come to exchange some goods for gasoline but senior officers suddenly appeared and in order to not be caught red-handed, they hid the teen in the gasoline tank, where he could die,” said Saidbek Ahmadbekov.  “To conceal the vestiges of their crime, the soldier could throw the teen’s body into the river.”