The District Court in Östersund announced its verdict at 8:00 am on Tuesday morning. The prosecutor called for life imprisonment for the 37-year-old Uzbek man who was charged of having tried to shoot dead an Imam in Strömsund 2012. The prosecution says that the man carried out the attack on behalf of the Uzbek security services. The Imam, Obid Nazarov, is a well-known critic of the regime in Uzbekistan.
The District Court concluded that the attack was carried out by the 37-year old on behalf of someone else and that it is an aggravating circumstance, but it did not point out the Uzbek government.
Although there is no forensic evidence linking the accused man to the gun, all other evidence implicates the 37-year old, the Court considers.
Shot in the back of the head
The Imam was shot in the back of the head in a stairwell. He was seriously wounded during the attack but survived.
At the end of the pleadings the 27th of November the Public Prosecutor moved for life imprisonment for the suspect torpedo. The District Court decided that the accused should remain in custody awaiting sentence.
The trial is unique since it is the first time a prosecutor accused another country of being responsible for political violence in Sweden.
Aggravating circumstances
Among the aggravating circumstances that emerged during the trial is the fact that the man had five phone subscriptions. He had made his way to Sweden through Estonia with false visas. One of the visas stated that the man was a football manager. The 37-year old himself has no explanation for the falsifications, but says it was his employer who ordered them.
Important for expats
There has been a major uzbek interest in the trial, especially among exil Uzbeks. For example, reporting in local media has been regularly translated into uzbek on a Facebook page.
”They will not stop assassinate opponents”
The Imam's son, David Nazarov, believe that the conviction will send an important message to the Uzbek government.
– But they will not stop trying to assassinate opponents with refuge abroad, said David Nazarov.
After serving his prison sentence, the Uzbek man will be deported from Sweden for life.
Timeline
It was on the 22 February 2012 a 54-year old imam was assaulted in a stairwell in Strömsund. He was shot in the back of his head, suffered severe brain injuries but survived.
The Imam is a strong critic of the government in his native Uzbekistan and has lived in Sweden since he received asylum in 2006.
In the aftermath of the assassination attempt swedish security police has been criticized for not taking the threat to the imam seriously.
An Uzbek couple in their 30s has been found to have tracked down the imam in advance of the murder attempt, but was acquitted in the District Court and Court of Appeal because it cannot be proved that they knew about the murder plans.
The suspected shooter was arrested in January 2015 in Russia and then submitted to Sweden on 25 August.
The Imam is still receiving treatment for his injuries and remains at a secret location.