On 2 October 2009, in Tashkent, human rights defender, Mr Farhad Muhtarov, was sentenced to five years in prison on fraud charges. He had pleaded not guilty to charges of fraudulently borrowing sums of money. Farhad Muhtarov is an activist with the grassroots movement Human Rights Alliance of Uzbekistan, which works on a variety of human rights issues including torture, access to justice, right to a fair trial, economic and social rights, and the rights of vulnerable groups.