Uzbekistan Asks Russia To Freeze Gulnara Karimova's Property In Moscow

Gulnara Karimova in 2010

The Uzbek Prosecutor-General’s Office has asked Russian authorities to freeze real estate in Russia that belongs to Gulnara Karimova, the daughter of the late autocratic Uzbek President Islam Karimov.

The press service of the Russian Prosecutor- General’s Office said on August 24 that the Uzbek request is being assessed, but offered no further detail.

The Uzbek Prosecutor-General's Office said last month that Karimova was in custody following a 2015 conviction and faced additional charges in a continuing investigation.

In a July 28 statement, the Prosecutor-General's Office said it is seeking to freeze $1.5 billion worth of assets owned by Karimova in 12 countries, including her property in Moscow consisting of a penthouse, a villa complex, eight apartments, a hotel compound, a house, and a land lot in Moscow.

The statement also alleged that Karimova illegally obtained assets worth more than $590 million and received some $870 million in kickbacks.

Karimova, 45, was once a high-profile socialite, fashion designer, pop singer, and ambassador to United Nations agencies in Geneva, and was seen as a potential successor to her father.

But she vanished from sight as she found herself at the center of a financial-crimes probe in Uzbekistan in which many of her associates have been jailed. She has also been tied to ongoing money-laundering investigations in Sweden and Switzerland.

Multiple previous reports indicated Karimova had been under house arrest since 2014.

With reporting by Interfax and RIA Novosti