Uzbek citizen receives life sentence in Turkey over savage killing

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On April 18 this year, in the Pendik district of Istanbul, Turkey, Uzbek citizen Rustam Otamirzayev was sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment for the deliberate murder of his girlfriend, Vasilakhon Usmonova. Turkish media reported the verdict.

The incident occurred following a dispute between Otamirzayev and Usmonova. The man took the woman to the basement of the house, beat her, and then stabbed her several times before fleeing the scene.

According to the indictment prepared by the Anadolu Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, the defendant was charged with premeditated murder, punishable by aggravated life imprisonment, and armed robbery, which carries a sentence of 10 to 15 years in prison. Rustam Otamirzayev was brought before the 17th High Criminal Court for the hearing. The session was attended by the lawyers of both parties and an interpreter.

’’I have never killed or injured anyone in Russia. I was previously convicted in Uzbekistan after a quarrel and served a prison sentence. I admit my guilt and deeply regret my actions. I have an 80-year-old mother in Uzbekistan who needs my care. I ask for a lighter sentence and your leniency so I can be released,’’ Otamirzayev said in his statement before the court.

A direct eyewitness to the incident, who testified in court, described the horrifying moments as follows:

’’At around 8:30, I woke up to the sound of screaming. I went to the door and saw the defendant and the woman. The incident happened right in front of my door. The defendant stabbed the woman in the neck and was trying to drag her into the basement. We started shouting and begged him to stop. Before we could call the police, the defendant managed to drag her downstairs. The woman tried to fight back. When he got her into the basement, he struck her in the back three or four times. When the defendant left the scene, she was still alive.’’

The state prosecutor, in his final statement, requested that the defendant be sentenced for premeditated murder.

After deliberation, the court announced its verdict, sentencing Rustam Otamirzayev to aggravated life imprisonment for the crime of intentional murder.