(RFE/RL)
PRAGUE, March 8, 2006 (RFE/RL) -- Officials say an Uzbek citizen was shot dead on the Uzbek-Turkmen border on March 6.
Reports from March 8 indicate that 19-year-old Nigmatilla Jumaniyozov was one of three men fired on by Turkmen border guards as they crossed the border into Turkmenistan.
The other two were arrested.
An official in the Khorazm regional administration confirmed the incident to RFE/RL's Uzbek Service.
The official, who called himself Bekzod, said that the shooting was the result of "confusion" and that he believes the victim had entered Turkmenistan "to buy gasoline."
Gasoline in Turkmenistan is cheaper than in Uzbekistan and it is common for Uzbeks living in the border area to cross the border to buy fuel.
He said the other two men have now been released and returned to Uzbekistan.
RFE/RL Central Asia Report
RFE/RL Central Asia Report
SUBSCRIBE For regular news and analysis on all five Central Asian countries by e-mail, subscribe to "RFE/RL Central Asia Report."