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A 48-year-old man from Almalyk has been detained in Tashkent region on suspicion of large-scale fraud built around a simple but systematic deception: lending small sums of money while requiring borrowers to sign promissory notes for amounts many times larger, then using those documents to pursue court-ordered repayments.
Pavel Kim was arrested after 65 people filed complaints with the Tashkent regional police headquarters (GUVD). The regional GUVD press service said investigators found roughly 100 promissory notes, cadastral documents covering 55 real-estate objects, pneumatic weapons, and — critically — enforcement orders from the Bureau of Compulsory Execution showing that around 50 people had already had money seized from them on the basis of such documents. Fourteen of those named in the enforcement paperwork are foreign nationals.
How the Scheme Allegedly Worked
The mechanics, as described by investigators, were straightforward. In one documented instance, Kim lent a borrower $1,000 but had the note drawn up for $10,000 — a tenfold inflation of the actual debt. He then took the inflated notes to court to recover the larger, fictitious sums. Because promissory notes carry significant legal weight under Uzbek civil procedure, the scheme allowed him to weaponise the judiciary against people who had no written record of the true amount they had received.
The discovery of cadastral documents for 55 properties suggests investigators are examining whether real estate was also transferred or pledged as collateral in connection with the fraudulent notes, though the precise role of those documents has not yet been established publicly.
Charges and Investigation
Kim faces criminal proceedings under three articles of Uzbekistan’s Criminal Code: Article 168, paragraph (a), part 4 — fraud on an especially large scale; Article 188, part 1 — unlawful entrepreneurial activity; and Article 205, paragraph (a), part 2 — abuse of authority or official powers causing especially large damage. He has been remanded in custody and the investigation is continuing.
The Tashkent regional GUVD is appealing to anyone who believes they may have been defrauded by Kim, or who holds information about his activities, to contact the department on 71-762-20-82 or the emergency line 102. Anonymity is guaranteed, police said.