'Witch' arrested for performing lewd acts against young men who paid her to tell their fortunes

Tuesday, May 13, 2025 - A “witch” has been detained for seducing young men who paid her to tell their fortunes. 

Surayo Najmuddinova, 45, faces seven years in jail for “committing acts of a s£xual nature against them” in her native ex-Soviet republic Tajikistan. 

She was previously fined twice for fortune telling. 

Recently, a hidden camera caught her in the lewd acts, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Tajikistan which released the alleged video. 

"She forced clients to have s£x for magical rituals,” said a report on Telegram. 

Police said Najmuddinova carried out "secret actions that were truly considered shameful and disgraceful" 

"The woman abused the trust of citizens who came to her, mostly young men, and under the guise of ‘religious ceremonies’ committed acts of a sexual nature against them," stated the ministry. 

"Najmuddinova's criminal activity was stopped by law enforcement officers. She has now been detained and placed in custody. 

"A criminal case has been opened against the suspect [for] committing acts of a sexual nature with the use of religious or other beliefs… A comprehensive investigation is underway." 

A TV report in capital Dushanbe said the fortune teller “deceived citizens by saying that her hand had extraordinary energy and could detect all kinds of diseases and the future of a person by taking the pulse”. 

She was detained in Rudaki district, close to Dushanbe. 

Her "victims" were in their late teens and early 20s.