PROSECUTORS SEEK TO MERGE SUNSHINE COALITION LEADERS'

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 TASHKENT 000269 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR EUR/CACEN, SA, AND DRL E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/02/2016 TAGS: PHUM PREL PGOV ECON UZ SUBJECT: PROSECUTORS SEEK TO MERGE SUNSHINE COALITION LEADERS' TRIALS CLASSIFIED BY AMB. JON R. PURNELL, FOR REASONS 1.4 (B, D). REF: TASHKENT 0186 AND PREVIOUS ¶1. (C) Summary: January 30 was scheduled to be the last day of Sunshine Coalition co-founder Nodira Khidoyatova's trial on tax evasion charges. It also was to be the first day of fellow co-founder Sanjar Umarov's trial on similar accusations. Instead, the judge postponed action on both cases and entertained a prosecution motion to combine the two into a single trial. Surprisingly, diplomats and human rights activists were allowed to observe the hearing. Given the legal maneuvering by the prosecutor and defense attorneys, we expect the process to continue until mid-February. Despite the increased time now being dedicated to the two cases, in the end, we expect the final verdicts will be "guilty," but in view of the bizarre theatrics involved in the process, we cannot exclude the possibility of light or even suspended sentences. End summary. ACT ONE: NODIRA KHIDOYATOVA'S NON-VERDICT -------------- ¶2. (C) Sources in the Free Farmers Party (Ozod Dehqonlar) informed the Embassy that judge Zakir Isayev of the Tashkent City Criminal Court would deliver a verdict in the tax evasion trial of Sunshine Coalition co-founder Nodira Khidoyatova on the morning of January 30. Fellow co-founder Sanjar Umarov's trial was scheduled to begin on the same day. That morning, guards admitted about 20 observers, including poloff and a British diplomat, human rights activists, and Khidoyatova's family, into the cramped basement courtroom. Nodira Khidoyatova sat in the defendant's cage. Her sister, Ozod Dehqonlar head Nigora Khidoyatova, told poloff later that her sister seemed well and in good spirits. (Comment: We agree. Nodira looked healthy, well rested, and fashionably dressed in jeans, a sweater, and high-heeled shoes. She held a Bible, which she occasionally opened to apparently random pages and read during the prosecuting attorney's presentation. End comment.) She frequently made eye contact with her sister, and on occasion the two whispered to each other, and even shared a laugh across the courtroom. ¶3. (C) As the hearing began, the judge denied motions, reportedly filed earlier by the defendant herself, to declare the hearing closed and to fire her defense attorney. (Comment: If Khidoyatova indeed filed such motions, she may have done so under pressure from investigators. End comment.) The State Prosecutor then read the indictment against Khidoyatova. The indictment included the accusation that, as director of the petroleum firm Buyuk Siymolar, Khidoyatova had conspired with Sanjar Umarov to sell Uzbek petroleum products abroad and hide the proceeds - allegedly more than USD 3 million - from tax authorities in offshore bank accounts. (Note: While post has no information suggesting that Khidoyatova has had business dealings with Umarov, we would not be surprised if the two cooperated in business, though Khidoyatova's family has consistently denied it. End note.) ¶4. (C) In light of government accusations of complicity between Khidoyatova and Umarov, the prosecutor asked the judge to combine the two cases into a single trial. Both the prosecutor and defense attorney asked the judge to instruct the attorneys on how to proceed. The judge thus adjourned the trial until the afternoon. During the recess, Khidoyatova reportedly met with her defense attorney. In the afternoon hearing, which lasted about 35 minutes, Khidoyatova again firmly denied the charges against her and asked that additional specialists be called to testify regarding Buyuk Siymolar company documents, including records of previous tax inspections, which she said would prove her innocence. It is still unclear whether both Khidoyatova and Umarov will eventually appear in court together. ACT TWO: SANJAR UMAROV'S FALSE START -------------- ¶5. (C) After a brief intermission, court officials summoned observers back into the courtroom for the opening of Sanjar Umarov's trial. Umarov is accused of grand larceny and tax evasion, in addition to other charges, in connection with his business dealings. Umarov is being tried together with three other men, identified as technical specialists with one of Umarov's petroleum ventures: Rashot Hasanboyev, Ilhom Usmanov, and Ravshan Babajanov. Babajanov had not been arrested, and TASHKENT 00000269 002 OF 002 was therefore seated in the front bench of the courtroom, and not in the defendants' cage with Umarov, Hasanboyev, and Usmanov. (Comment: Umarov, like Khidoyatova, appeared healthy, alert, and relaxed. End comment.) ¶6. (C) The judge opened the hearing and informed the defendants of their rights and responsibilities in court. Then Babajanov's attorney, noting that he had only recently joined the defense team, asked the judge to postpone the trial for four days while he familiarized himself with the case materials. Judge Isayev asked the prosecutor for his opinion, whereupon the prosecutor stood and declared, "The law gives each defendant the right to an attorney who is well informed on his case. As the defense attorney's motion does not contradict the law, I support it." (Comment: The prosecutor's statement was unnecessary and clearly intended for the benefit of the observers. End comment.) Thus, the judge adjourned the trial until Friday, February 3. WHAT'S NEXT? -------------- ¶7. (C) Umarov's lawyer noted that, if the judge agrees to consider the Umarov and Khidoyatova cases as one, the two defendants may or may not appear in court together. He said that combining the cases would be difficult, as there would be two defense teams on the same case with different sets of information. Nigora Khidoyatova said that, in view of the defense motions for new evidence and witnesses, she expects the trial to continue at least until mid-February. ¶8. (C) Comment: We expect that the Umarov-Khidoyatova trial will continue to be open to the public (or as much public as will fit into the small basement courtroom). While post has yet to receive an official response to its request for access, courthouse guards put up little resistance to the diplomats and unregistered human rights activists who appeared at the court. Much of the process seems geared to international observers, including the defendants' incongruously fashionable dress and the prosecuting attorney's paean on the rights of defendants. Notwithstanding the GOU's formalistic show of openness and transparency, it would be unprecedented if the trial did not end with a guilty verdict. However, this is no ordinary case, and Umarov and Khidoyatova are no ordinary defendants. We cannot exclude the possibility of unusually light or even suspended sentences. PURNELL