Thousands of crimes, hundreds of victims, and billions in damages over three months — what is the truth behind the figures released by the Ministry of Internal Affairs?

A press conference themed "Openness and Dialogue with the People — The Main Criterion" was held by the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Tashkent. The main results in the field of law enforcement for the first quarter of 2026 were announced during the event.

Working in sync with the mass media in the interests of the people is one of the most pressing tasks facing internal affairs bodies. To this end, a press conference titled "Openness and Dialogue with the People — The Main Criterion: Analytical Report on the Activities of Internal Affairs Bodies for the First Quarter of This Year" was held today at the MIA Palace of Culture.

At the event, attended by the ministry's leadership, officials, and media representatives, special corners were set up for each specialized service, and experts provided information to visitors.

Ramazon Ashropov, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs and Head of the Investigative Department, reported in his speech that a total of 6,211 preventable crimes were committed in our country during the first three months of 2026, marking a decrease of 596 compared to the same period last year.

It was noted that through the initiative of the staff, 9,544 crimes were uncovered, showing a 37 percent improvement in this practice compared to the first three months of last year.

In particular, regarding cases related to the illegal trafficking of narcotic drugs, 4,080 criminal cases were initiated, and 872 kg of narcotics were confiscated from criminal groups and individuals, including 33 kg of synthetic substances

and over 296,000 strong-acting medicines.

In the fight against organized crime, a total of 670 crimes were uncovered, and 80 organized groups along with 211 members of organized groups were detained.

Additionally, 1,076 crimes related to corruption and economic crimes were uncovered, and the resulting damage amounting to 199 billion 565 million soms was identified, with legal recovery efforts underway.

Over the first three months of this year, more than 18,000 crimes were committed using information and communication technologies, with 97 percent of them involving the acquisition of citizens' funds through electronic payment systems.

During the operational activities of our operational and frontline units, 2,193 individuals who had been hiding from investigative and judicial authorities were detained, and 171 missing persons were found and returned to their families.

Overall, in the first quarter of this year, the commission of crimes was prevented in 7,309 mahallas across our country. This accounts for nearly 81 percent of all mahallas in our country. Meanwhile, among the mahallas where crimes were recorded, 1,497 (16.6%) were categorized as "yellow" and 186 (2.1%) as "red."

During the three months of 2026, 1,102 traffic accidents occurred in the republic. While 31.4 percent (346) of them resulted in human deaths, 13.6 percent occurred due to drivers failing to yield to pedestrians, 32.9 percent due to non-compliance with established speed limits, 4.2 percent due to drivers falling asleep while driving, and 22.4 percent due to disregarding traffic light signals.

The Deputy Minister also highlighted the results of large-scale operational and preventive measures carried out within the system. In the first phase of the "Safe and Healthy Country" month alone, a total of 43,931 operational-search and preventive measures were conducted, uncovering illegal cases in the areas of 4,009 drug-related, 4,789 organized crime, 25,475 corruption, and 6,348 terrorism-related offenses.

Specifically, a total of 489.7 kg of drugs and nearly 308,000 strong-acting medications were seized, and 1,541 bushes of plants containing narcotic substances were found being cultivated, all of which were confiscated in the established manner.

Furthermore, 457 weapons and 6,584 pieces of ammunition were seized from organized criminal groups and individuals, cutting short potential tragic incidents in a timely manner.

To implement the experience of the Chilanzar district defined by our President, 55 internal affairs officers were assigned by name to all mahallas in the district, and heads of departmental services of the Ministry were assigned to 21 of the most critical mahallas. An additional 667 forces and assets were deployed to ensure security.

Over 100,000 (100,742) appeals in total were received by the ministry's system in the first quarter of 2026, and 68 percent of them were satisfied during the reporting period.

Out of 90,332 appeals received by territorial internal affairs bodies, 64,352 were resolved positively, ensuring the legal rights of citizens, while 8,480 were resolved by providing qualified legal explanations.

The press conference also touched upon efforts to improve the physical and combat readiness of personnel and strengthen service discipline during the elapsed period of 2026. It was noted that the qualifications of 25,629 employees were upgraded based on the continuous education-career system, and special recognition was given to the fact that, as a result of the attention paid to women in the system, 53 female officers were appointed to leadership positions in March alone.

As a result of extensive explanatory work carried out to eradicate corrupt practices among employees, in the past 3 months of this year, employees in 60 instances rejected bribes offered by citizens and appealed to the ministry's Personal Security Service to take legal action.

In the line of duty to protect the peace of the homeland, 10 employees died and 39 were injured during the performance of their duties in 2026 alone.

The service activities and labor of our employees in ensuring citizen and public safety in our country are consistently and highly praised by our esteemed President.

In this year alone, 11 internal affairs officers have been awarded state honors.

In addition, more than 25,000 employees were rewarded by the Ministry of Internal Affairs through departmental orders.

In the second part of the press conference, mass media representatives addressed the officials with their questions. Many events that occurred over the three months were discussed, legal understandings were provided, and concrete information was presented. At the same time, opinions regarding the system's activities and proposals concerning certain issues troubling the population were expressed.

At the end of the heated and mutually engaging event, agreements were reached on a number of issues to be implemented in the future.