Homeland Security Task Force: Uzbekistan national charged with stealing trucking cargo theft shipments

Date: Oct. 21, 2026

Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov

David X. Sullivan, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, and P.J. O’Brien, Special Agent in Charge of the New Haven Division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, today announced that Nursulton Izzatulloevich Khaydarov, a citizen of Uzbekistan, has been charged by indictment for his alleged involvement in the theft of numerous trucking cargo shipments.

As alleged in court documents and statements made in court, the Homeland Security Task Force has been investigating numerous trucking cargo thefts from locations in California and elsewhere. The investigation revealed that, since approximately September 2025, Khaydarov and others involved in the scheme purchased or otherwise assumed control of multiple motor carrier companies, including their U.S. Department of Transportation numbers, motor carrier identification numbers, business email accounts, and the identities of their owners. They then posed as the previous business owner and exploited the reputation and trust of an established business to obtain contracts for interstate shipments. Once they negotiated a contract with a freight broker for an interstate shipment, a driver picked up the shipment from the distribution location. However, the load did not make it to its intended destination and was subsequently reported stolen. At times, co-conspirators made ransom demands for the return of the stolen load.

The indictment alleges that Khaydarov, a lawful permanent resident of the U.S., had a valid New Jersey commercial driver’s license. He also possessed fraudulent driver’s licenses in the names of “Sayid Makhmudarov,” “Rustam Mavlonov,” “Dmitri Aganin,” “Roman Smirov,” and “Kairat Nurtas.” The driver’s licenses depicted a photograph of Khaydarov, but with altered facial features.

It is alleged that the conspiracy has involved thefts of at least 24 cargo loads containing hard drives, stereo equipment, clothing, electronics, computer equipment, food items, nicotine products, and other goods. To date, the estimated retail value of the stolen products of the cargo thefts Khaydarov was personally involved in is more than $12 million.

Khaydarov was arrested on a federal criminal complaint on June 1, 2026, in Ontario, California. On Sept. 22, 2026, a federal grand jury in New Haven returned an indictment charging Khaydarov with conspiracy, an offense that carries a maximum term of imprisonment of five years.

Khaydarov appeared today in Bridgeport federal court and pleaded not guilty to the charge. He has been detained since his arrest.

U.S. Attorney Sullivan stressed that an indictment is not evidence of guilt. Charges are only allegations, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This ongoing investigation is being led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with the assistance and the U.S. Department of Transportation – Office of Inspector General, the Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the Fullerton (Calif.) Police Department, the Ontario (Calif.) Police Department, and other state and local law enforcement agencies. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys David T. Huang and Larysa J. Kern.

This prosecution is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement toward identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States.

HSTF New Haven comprises agents and officers from the FBI, DEA, HSI, ATF, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, Internal Revenue Service – Criminal Investigation, U.S. Department of Transportation – Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Department of Commerce – Bureau of Industry and Security’s Office of Export Enforcement, and Connecticut State Police, with prosecutions led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut.

IRS-CI is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. It is the only federal law enforcement agency with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code. IRS-CI has 16 field offices located across the U.S. and maintains an international prese