Local authorities investigate apartment transfer of elderly Tashkent woman following social media abuse claims

Local authorities are looking into the apartment transfer of an elderly Tashkent woman after claims of abuse surfaced on social media.

A video circulating online shows an elderly woman, living alone in an apartment in Tashkent's Mirzo-Ulugbek district, alleging that social workers had confined her without food or water, preventing her from leaving. She further claimed that her hot and cold water supplies were cut off from the main shaft and the gas valve was removed from her stove.

In response to the public outcry, the press service of the district mayor’s office released a statement. They clarified that the woman is a participant in the "Step Toward an Active Life" program, which provides her with financial assistance and in-home social care. The office vehemently refuted claims that a social worker had not visited the woman for two weeks, asserting that visits adhere strictly to a predetermined schedule. Officials stated that utilities had not been disconnected and that the pensioner possessed her own keys, which they suggested she might have misplaced due to progressing dementia.

The official statement read: "Due to age-related memory decline, the woman does not always recognize the people who come to visit her. For this reason, she keeps one set of keys, while the second remains with her assigned social worker. The pensioner’s bank card and expenses are fully regulated through an electronic monitoring system in compliance with the law. Additionally, a supplementary medical examination has been scheduled for her, and necessary medical steps will be taken based on the specialists' findings."

On July 30, it was reported that the district prosecutor’s office had taken charge of the situation. A preliminary investigation revealed that the woman, born in 1940, is registered at a local clinic with multiple chronic medical conditions.

Significantly, investigators uncovered that the pensioner's apartment ownership had been transferred to another individual via a notarized bill of sale executed in late September 2025. As a result, the prosecutor's office has initiated a criminal investigation into large-scale fraud. If found guilty, those responsible could face penalties ranging from substantial fines up to 600 BCVs (Base Calculating Value = 440 thousand soums) to prison sentences of 8 to 10 years.