Court in Termez Issues Verdict in Mercenarism Case

Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — The Termez City Criminal Court has reviewed a case against a 30-year-old citizen accused of mercenarism.

According to case materials, the man left for Russia in 2022 for work, where he was later sentenced to 9 years in prison for drug possession. While serving his sentence, in August 2025 he agreed to sign a contract with the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.

After being sent for military training in Nizhny Novgorod, he was assigned to deliver food supplies to servicemen. He was later injured and hospitalized. According to his statements, due to personnel shortages he was again sent to a training range, where his health condition worsened.

In January 2026, while being transported to a hospital in Belgorod, he left escort custody and traveled to Moscow, after which he contacted the embassy and obtained documentation to return to Uzbekistan.

During court proceedings, he stated that he had been promised a monthly salary of 192,000 rubles and Russian citizenship, but these conditions were not fulfilled. The defendant fully admitted guilt and requested leniency.

The court found him guilty under Part 1 of Article 154 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Uzbekistan (mercenarism) and sentenced him to 4 years and 6 months of restricted freedom.