Does the mayor of Termiz order the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to imprison the businessman for 15 days?

Earlier, an audio message circulated on social networks claiming that Uktam Turaev, the mayor of Termiz in the Surkhandarya region, verbally instructed the head of the city's Internal Affairs Department to arrest a businessman during a meeting. The message stated that, following the governor's directive, "You will lock him up for 15 days and fine him. Don't release anyone, regardless of who comes." Consequently, the businessman was detained in the Internal Affairs Department building for over three hours.

In response to this situation, the Termiz city administration clarified that only a fine was imposed on the businessman. According to the administration, residents of Termiz had complained about the untimely removal of waste from the landfill. The company "Bio techno eco" LLC, responsible for waste removal, was accused of neglecting its duties, regularly failing to perform assigned tasks, and violating city improvement regulations.

The Department of Internal Affairs thoroughly investigated the situation and, based on Article 161 of the Code of Administrative Responsibility (violation of city beautification rules), prepared a report imposing a fine of 330,000 soums against Shuhrat Shernazarov, the head of "Bio techno eco" LLC.

In a statement, the city administration urged social media users and observers not to believe and spread unconfirmed and unsubstantiated information. They emphasized that the city administration is always prepared to support entrepreneurs.