KULOB, April 13, 2010, Asia-Plus -- On Monday April 12, the Kulob city court issued the first arrest warrant.

The court issued the warrant for the arrest of local resident Umedjon Odinayev who is suspected of having been involved in drug pushing.

All participants of the procedure, except Odinayev’s lawyer, were present during the announcement of charges.  The lawyer was not present because Odinayev abandoned services of a lawyer, deciding to defend himself without a lawyer.

We will recall that a new criminal procedure code came into effect in Tajikistan on April 1 this year.  The new code transfers to courts some powers previously held by prosecutors.  The new criminal procedure code adopted by the Majlisi Namoyandagon (Tajikistan’s lower chamber of parliament) on October 14 2009 gives the courts broader powers.  Under the code, the courts are responsible for issuing arrest warrants, search warrants, authorizing the freezing of assets, property confiscation and wiretapping if investigators can prove such a necessity.   The new code mandates the presence of a suspect and his lawyer during the announcement of charges.  Before that, the prosecutor general performed these functions, which was criticized by experts.