In Kazakhstan, tax officials, previously accused of corruption, were acquitted
The city court of Pavlodar found evidence proving the guilt of employees of the Department of State Revenues (DSR) of Pavlodar region as obtained illegally, and on this basis found the defendants’ innocent.
This scandalous story began in August of last year, when employees of the Anti-Corruption Department detained the head of the DSR (tax committee) of Pavlodar region Ernur Baygurmanov and his subordinates – the head of the Economic Investigation Service, Azamat Beisenbaev, and the officer of this Department, Daulet Magzumov. It is noteworthy that in the apartments and offices of the detainees during the search, there were found about $190 000 and 9 expensive Swiss watches.
Tax officials were charged with accepting bribes on an especially large scale. According to the Anti-Corruption Agency, the statement against these employees was made by the businessman from Ekibastuz, Tasbulat Abguzhinov, who owns several companies, including those involved in coal mining, and the bank. He said that the tax authorities extorted $200 000 from him for the termination of the criminal case on the fact that one of his companies had undercharged taxes worth more than $2.5 million. The businessman transferred $100 000 to Baygurmanov and Beisenbaev in March 2018 through officer Magzumov. True, after some time, the tax authorities decided to return the money to Abguzhinov, since it was not possible to solve his problem. During the return of the money they were caught.
The trial of senior officers of the DSR began in September 2019. After a month of proceedings, the court concluded that the process’ participants were innocent. As ACCA learned, the prosecution of tax officials for bribery was based primarily on wiretaps and confrontations. But both the court did not take into account, because it considered this evidence as obtained illegally or in violation of the law.
One more interesting nuance should be noted. Six months after the detention of Baygurmanov, his successor, acting head of the DSR of Pavlodar region, Kuat Belgibaev, also came into the view of the anti-corruption fighters, and also when receiving a bribe of $200 000. Together with Belgibaev, the head of the Debt Management Department of the same Department, Murat Zhangazin, was detained.
