Uzbekistan man charged in Connecticut with stealing $12M of cargo shipments
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**Uzbekistan man charged in Connecticut with stealing $12M of cargo shipments**
A man from Uzbekistan accused of taking more than $12 million in trucking cargo shipments appeared in federal court in Bridgeport on Wednesday and entered a not guilty plea to a conspiracy charge.
The case follows an indictment returned on Sept. 22 by a federal grand jury in New Haven against 33-year-old Nursulton Izzatulloevich Khaydarov. If he is convicted on the conspiracy count, he faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison.
A report from the U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut describes the conspiracy Khaydarov is alleged to have joined.
Court records and statements indicate that the Homeland Security Task Force has been investigating a string of cargo thefts from sites in California and other states.
Investigators say that, beginning in September 2025, Khaydarov and his alleged co-conspirators bought or otherwise gained control of several motor carrier companies.
They then obtained the companies’ U.S. Department of Transportation numbers, motor carrier identification numbers, email accounts and the identities of the owners.
Prosecutors say these individuals pretended to be the former owners and used the standing and credibility of the established businesses to secure contracts for interstate shipments.
Once a freight broker negotiated a contract for an interstate load, a driver would collect the shipment from the distribution site.
Even so, the report says many loads were never delivered and were reported stolen. In some cases, the alleged offenders also demanded ransom for the return of the stolen goods.
According to the indictment, Khaydarov was a lawful permanent resident of the United States and held a valid New Jersey commercial driver’s license.
He is also alleged to have had fake driver’s licenses in the names of “Sayid Makhmudarov,” “Rustam Mavlonov,” “Dmitri Aganin,” “Roman Smirov,” and “Kairat Nurtas.”
Prosecutors say each of those IDs showed Khaydarov’s photo with altered facial features.
The conspiracy is ultimately alleged to have involved the theft of at least 24 cargo loads.
Those shipments included hard drives, stereo equipment, clothing, electronics, computer equipment, food items, nicotine products and other valuable goods.
As noted, the report places the estimated value of the stolen property — from thefts specifically said to have involved Khaydarov — at more than $12 million.
Khaydarov was arrested on a federal criminal complaint in Ontario, California, on June 1. He has remained detained since then and was brought to Bridgeport for his court appearance on Wednesday.
Prosecutors stress that Khaydarov is presumed innocent unless and until he is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with assistance from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General, the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division, Homeland Security Investigations and the police departments in Fullerton and Ontario, California.