Kazakhstan: A top manager of a company, owned by Nazarbayev’s daughter, committed suicide

The rallies in early January, that took place in Kazakhstan, not only led to a redistribution of power, which led to the resignation of many officials, but also became a trigger for several suicides.

For example, on January 26, it became known that Ruslan Shamshiev, Managing Director for Legal Affairs of the EPO Operator company, hanged himself in his office. This information was confirmed by the police department of the city of Nur-Sultan.

“After the discovery of the corpse of the man, the police department of Yesil district initiated a criminal case under the article “Incitement to suicide”. Currently, in order to ensure the completeness and objectivity of the investigation, the necessary investigative actions are being carried out, ” the police said.

As ACCA has already reported, the private company EPO Operator, associated with Aliya Nazarbayeva, the youngest daughter of the first President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, was engaged in collecting recycling fees for cars in Kazakhstan. However, after the January rallies, the current President of Kazakhstan, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, instructed to ban the EPO Operator from collecting recycling fees and transfer this function to the state. In addition, Tokayev instructed to revise the recycling fee rates. As a result, the EPO Operator was transferred to the ownership of the state under the deed of gift, that is, it was, in fact, nationalized.

Meanwhile, on the eve of Shamshiev’s suicide, it became known that employees of the Anti-Corruption Agency detained the chairman of the board of the EPO Operator company, Medet Kumargaliev, and the vice minister of ecology, geology and natural resources of Kazakhstan, Akhmetzhan Primkulov, on suspicion of committing corruption crimes. It should also be noted that according to some sources, Kumargaliev and Primkulov were detained while trying to leave the country.

However, the wife of Medet Kumargaliev refutes this information. According to Asem Kumargaliyeva, her husband didn’t leave Kazakhstan and didn’t even try to do so.

“I am a public defender and the wife of the former chairman of the board of EPO Operator LLP Kumargaliyev Medet. Information about the detention of my husband was posted in all the media, and the message also contained information that he was going to leave the country. In turn, I want to inform you that my husband remained in the country and wasn’t going to leave it. This information is not true. Medet Kumargaliyev was born, grew up and never intended to leave Kazakhstan. He is a true patriot, a father of many children and a man who has devoted himself to ecology for more than 20 years. As a public defender, I will represent him and fight for justice to be done. All information about the progress of the investigation against my husband will be on my Facebook and Instagram. I ask the authorities not to mislead the public,” Asem Kumargalieva wrote on her Facebook page.

It should also be recalled that Shamshiev’s suicide wasn’t the first case of suicide since the January rallies.

Thus, on January 10, the head of the police department of Zhambyl region, Zhanat Suleimenov, committed suicide. According to some reports, a criminal case was initiated against him after the riots that took place throughout the country, including in Zhambyl region.

In addition, on the same days, information appeared about the suicide in Nur-Sultan of a Colonel of the National Security Committee. He was found dead in his backyard.

Recall that on January 8, ex-chairman of the National Security Committee Karim Masimov was detained in Kazakhstan. He is suspected of high treason.