Media reports say fugitive Tajik opposition politician and businessman Umarali Quvatov has been killed in Turkey.

Turkish and Russian media report that Quvatov was shot in the head on a street in Istanbul late on March 5.

An official at the Tajik Foreign Ministry said he could not comment until the ministry had more information.

A tycoon who once had close ties with President Emomali Rakhmon but became an opponent, Quvatov was wanted by Dushanbe on fraud charges that he said were politically motivated.