Kazakhstan: Brother of ex-head of the National Security Committee was put on wanted list for bribe

In Kazakhstan, former police chief of Pavlodar region Nurlan Masimov has been put on the wanted list. And the police of Almaty detained a deputy of the local representative body, Kairat Kudaibergen.

Nurlan Masimov is the cousin of the former chairman of the National Security Committee of Kazakhstan, Karim Masimov.

As ACCA has already reported, the Chairman of the NSC, Karim Masimov, was arrested on January 8 on suspicion of high treason. In March, it became known that Karim Masimov, in addition to treason, preparation for a violent seizure of power and abuse of office, is also suspected of committing corruption crimes.

“In particular, an investigation is underway into the fact that Masimov received a bribe in the amount of $2 million from representatives of a foreign state under one of the closed contracts as Chairman of the NSC. The return of these funds from Hong Kong to the National Bank of Kazakhstan was ensured. An investigation has also been launched into the fact that Masimov received an elite guest house and a land plot in the capital worth about $5 million from one of the business structures during his tenure as prime minister. After Masimov’s detention, in January 2022, $17.2 million in cash was seized from this guest house, as well as numerous luxury items – luxury watches, gold bars, antiques and much more,” the National Security Committee noted in its statement.

Nurlan Masimov has been the head of the Police Department of Pavlodar region since November 2019. After the riots that swept across the country in the first ten days of January and the arrest of Karim Masimov, as well as a number of other high-ranking members of the clan of the country’s first President, Nursultan Nazarbayev, including their relatives, Nurlan Masimov was removed from the post of head of the Police Department on January 15.

On April 22, it became known that Nurlan Masimov was suspected of taking a bribe on an especially large scale and that his arrest had been sanctioned by the court. However, since the whereabouts of Nurlan Masimov is unknown, he has been put on the wanted list.

“A complex of necessary operational-search measures is being taken to establish his whereabouts and other investigative actions aimed at clarifying all the circumstances of the case,” the Anti-Corruption Agency reported on this matter.

Meanwhile, the Prosecutor’s Office of Almaty reported about the detention of the deputy of the local representative elected body Kairat Kudaibergen. He is suspected of organizing the January riots in Almaty. According to investigators, Kudaibergen, together with Arman Dzhumageldiev (criminal authority nicknamed Wild Arman), organized a gathering of people in order to unite them around Wild Arman, who then went to the square, tried to organize a headquarters and set up common demands to the authorities. However, then this action turned into a mass brawl with ‘infliction of violence and bodily harm of varying severity’.

It’s worth noting that Wild Arman was also detained on suspicion of organizing and participating in the January riots. In addition, he is accused of kidnapping 24 bystanders, one of whom later died.

It should also be reminded that Kazakhstan is now investigating cases of participation in the January riots. At the same time, the investigating authorities often used unlawful methods of investigation, including torture. In particular, 9 law enforcement officers and 8 NSC’s officers were detained. At the same time, the Ministry of Internal Affairs is investigating 11 cases of dissemination of fake reports of torture.