DUSHANBE, January 30, 2012, Asia-Plus – Officer from the Ministry of Defense (MoD) has been arrested on suspicion of having been involved in drug pushing.

An official source at the Ministry of Interior (MoI) says Captain K.S., deputy commander of one of military units of the Ministry of Defense deployed in the Darvoz district Gorno Badakhshan was detained at the end of last week.  A package of narcotic drug that tested positive to heroin weighing one kilogram was confiscated from him.

Criminal proceedings have been instituted against him and an investigation is under way, the source said.

It is to be noted that it is not the first case when officers from power-wielding and aw enforcement structures have been arrested this month for drug trafficking.

In early January, deputy commander of one of military units of the Committee for Emergency Situations (CES) deployed in the northern Sughd province was arrested for drug trafficking.  A package containing some 4.5 kilograms of cannabis was confiscated from him.

Besides, several high-ranking police officers were arrested in early January for their alleged involvement in drug trafficking.

Among them is Faridoun Umarov, the chief of anti-drug squad within the Farkhor police department.  Faridoun Umarov is the brother of the SCNS first deputy head Mansour Umarov and the nephew of Deputy Interior Minister Said Jurakhonov.

Also arrested were Major Zafar Mirzoyev, the chief of the department within the Interior Ministry directorate for combating drug trafficking (drug police), and Lieutenant-Colonel Tohirkhon Sherov, the chief of the drug control squad within the Dushanbe police directorate.