Authorities arrest two Uzbeks for extorting money under police disguise

In St. Petersburg, Russia, two Uzbek nationals posed as police officers to deceive and extort 100,000 rubles (over 15 million UZS) from another Uzbek citizen working as a courier. The incident was reported by 78.ru.

The victim reported the crime to the police, stating that on April 11, two unknown individuals approached him, falsely identifying themselves as law enforcement officers. They threatened to charge him with possession of narcotics, using a firearm to intimidate him into handing over the money.

Authorities have since detained the suspects, and criminal proceedings for robbery have been initiated. Investigations into the case are ongoing.

Earlier, Russia’s First Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, Alexander Gorovoy, stated at the IX Labor Forum in St. Petersburg that as of 2024, there are approximately 6.3 million foreign nationals living in Russia, including 1.4 million Uzbeks.