A Fairfax County judge has issued a bench warrant for Abdulloi Toshpulodzoda, the 34-year-old man acquitted by reason of insanity in a 2019 Vienna killing who fled the country on a one-way flight to Tajikistan in July.
The warrant, enforceable beyond Virginia's borders, means Toshpulodzoda will be arrested and brought to Virginia if he enters the United States, according to a statement from the Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office reported by FOX 5 DC.
The office filed the motion requesting the warrant on Aug. 5, one month after Toshpulodzoda left the Northern Virginia Mental Health Institute in Falls Church on an authorized 48-hour pass and never returned.
As we reported Aug. 18, Toshpulodzoda left NVMHI on July 6 and traveled to Dulles International Airport, where he boarded a Turkish Airlines flight to Istanbul before continuing to Dushanbe, Tajikistan. The one-way ticket was purchased by another person in his name using an American Express card, court documents show.
Toshpulodzoda was charged with second-degree murder in December 2019 after police arrived at a Vienna home and found him covered in blood. The victim was his landlord, Mohammad Hemmatian, 61. In October 2022, Toshpulodzoda was found not guilty by reason of insanity in Fairfax County Circuit Court and committed to the custody of the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services.
On June 29, a judge ruled that Toshpulodzoda "shall not be released from custody and inpatient hospitalization without further order of this Court." Yet the facility's internal forensic privileging committee had separately approved him for unaccompanied community visits of up to 48 hours. Under Virginia law, the court has no say in a facility's decision to grant such passes; that authority rests with the clinical team.
In May 2024, Toshpulodzoda was granted permission to visit the Tajikistan Embassy in Washington, D.C., with an escort to obtain a passport. The Commonwealth's Attorney's Office supported that trip, Fox News Digital reported.
After Toshpulodzoda failed to return on July 8, NVMHI placed him on escape status and issued a facility warrant. Virginia State Police and federal authorities were notified, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection issued an alert.
The Commonwealth's Attorney's Office said prosecutors had opposed Toshpulodzoda's release at annual review hearings, including in June, citing public safety concerns, but that the office plays no role in facility decisions outside of court hearings.
Sean Kennedy of Virginians for Safe Communities criticized the handling of the case, saying authorities failed to notify the public, Immigration and Customs Enforcement or the victim's family in a timely manner. Hemmatian's family has declined to speak with the press.
No extradition treaty between the U.S. and Tajikistan has been confirmed in available reporting. Anyone with information about Toshpulodzoda's whereabouts can contact Virginia State Police or the Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office.
