Prosecutors reveal Gulnara Karimova, who has not been seen in public for three years, was convicted of embezzlement in 2015

This article is more than 3 years old

This article is more than 3 years old

Gulnara Karimova, the daughter of the former Uzbek president Islam Karimov, has been detained by officials investigating allegations of fraud and money laundering, the Uzbekistan prosecutor’s office has said.

Karimova, 45, was a prominent socialite, fashion designer and singer. She disappeared from public view in 2014 after apparently falling out with her father, who was Uzbekistan’s dictator for 27 years until his death from a stroke in September 2016.

The statement from Uzbek prosecutors on Friday also revealed that Karimova had been convicted of extortion and embezzlement in 2015, and sentenced to five years’ probation, which could equate to house arrest in Uzbek law and may explain her lack of public appearances.

The prosecutor general’s office said it was seeking to freeze about $1.5bn (£1.15bn) in assets held by Karimova in countries including Switzerland, Sweden, Britain, France, Latvia, Ireland, Malta, Germany, Spain, Russia, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates.

Karimova could not be contacted for comment. Her Swiss lawyer Gregoire Mangeat said he did not know where she was being held and revealed that he had been forced to cancel a visit to see her this month.

“It is of particular concern, given the worrying rumours circulating about the health status of Mrs Gulnara Karimova, that nobody, including her children, has been able to hear news since several months,” Mangeat said in an emailed statement.

Mangeat said he had been in Uzbekistan in December 2016, but Karimova had not informed him of any pending legal action.

He said that since he could not contact his client, he was prevented from representing her in a way that would guarantee her a fair trial. He said he had made a request through the Swiss attorney general’s office for the investigation to be suspended.

“The methods and behaviour adopted by the Republic of Uzbekistan thereby constitute a serious violation of the most fundamental human rights guarantees,” Mangeat said.

Karimova was a powerful businesswoman and politician, and was once considered a potential successor to her father. Uzbek authorities have not revealed her whereabouts since her disappearance in 2014, even after Karimov’s death.

Swiss prosecutors have investigated allegations of money laundering made against Karimova since 2014.

She is also being investigated on charges of fraud, evading customs and foreign exchange regulations, and money laundering, and was in custody pending a trial, the Uzbek prosecutor’s office statement said.

It refused take questions in person or by email, insisting on receiving them by post.

Prosecutors said the assets they were seeking to have frozen include cash and property in Switzerland and London, villas at Château de Groussay and Saint-Tropez in France, and a plane in Malta.

Karimov’s second daughter, Lola Karimova-Tillyaeva, is Uzbekistan’s ambassador to Unesco, a position she has held since 2008.