Dual Kazakhstani-Tajikistani Citizen Extradited from Egypt on Smuggling Charges

A dual Kazakhstani-Tajikistani citizen made his initial appearance in federal court in Phoenix, Arizona, on Tuesday after being extradited from Egypt to face human smuggling charges, the Justice Department said.

Abdulhafiz Bahovatdiny, 36, is charged with one count of conspiracy to bring aliens illegally to the United States and nine counts of bringing aliens to the United States for financial gain, according to an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in December 2025 and unsealed Tuesday.

According to court documents cited by the department, from around January 2022 to around February 2025, Bahovatdiny was allegedly part of an organization that brought nationals of Russia, Tajikistan and other Central Asian countries into the United States across the U.S.-Mexico border. The group allegedly arranged flights to Mexico or South America, directed migrants to hotels, shipped their belongings ahead, and guided them to Mexicali, Mexico, where a member drove them to the border and told them where to cross into Arizona.

The department said Bahovatdiny was arrested in Egypt earlier this year as the result of an INTERPOL Red Notice. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum of five years and a maximum of 15 years in prison.

The department noted that an indictment is an allegation and that defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Source: U.S. Department of Justice.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/959