Gulnara Karimova arrested in Uzbekistan

Almaty: Gulnara Karimova, the elder daughter of late Uzbek ex-president Islam Karimov, is in custody following a 2015 conviction for extortion and embezzlement and is being investigated for more crimes, the Uzbek Prosecutor General's office said on Friday.

Karimova, 45, is the eldest daughter of the late authoritarian president of the secretive ex-Soviet Central Asian state, who died a year ago.

The guilt of Karimova in the named crimes is confirmed by the statements of members of the organized criminal group, eyewitnesses, sufferers, materials of inspection of the activities of the organized groups, examinations and other testimonies collected on the case, the statement says.

In particular, it incriminer allegations of fraud, concealment of foreign currency, violation of customs legislation, violation of rules of trade or rendering of services, forgery and legalization of proceeds of crime.

But she became embroiled in bribery and money-laundering investigations.

It said she has been ordered held in custody in connection with those charges, but it did not specify what form of custody.

It is thought she has been under house arrest.

State prosecutors said in a statement they were seeking to freeze about $1.5 billion in assets held by Karimova, including in Switzerland, Sweden, Britain, France, Latvia, Ireland, Malta, Germany, Spain, Russia, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates.

In 2016, the U.S. Justice Department placed a seizure order on almost $600 million stemming from a suspected bribery scheme allegedly involving Karimova and a shakedown of major multinational telecommunications companies.

Neither Karimova nor her children were present at her father's funeral in September.

Swiss prosecutors reportedly questioned her in Tashkent in December, quashing rumours of her possible death.