The main trial in the case of Perizat Kairat and her mother Gaini Alashbayeva, accused of fraud totalling 3.5 billion tenge, is being held at the Astana Interdistrict Criminal Court. Judge Sabyrzhan Karimov has decided to restrict journalists' access to the hearings.
Despite the partially closed nature of the proceedings, details of the court hearings continue to become public knowledge. More than 70 media representatives signed up to attend the trial, but the defendants requested a closed hearing, citing the presence of confidential information in the case.
Read about the charges against Perizat Kairat and her mother Gaini Alashbayeva via this link.
WHY THE TRIAL BECAME PARTIALLY CLOSED
The judge addressed journalists to explain his decision. At the request of the defendants, the court restricted public access during interrogations and the examination of evidence. Karimov noted that the defendants could give testimony at any time, and the court would have to constantly adjourn to remove the media from the courtroom.
"This would take a long time and distract the participants in the process," the judge explained, ruling to remove journalists from the courtroom and ban live broadcasts of the hearings.
NEW DETAILS ABOUT THE FOUNDATION'S ESTABLISHMENT
From the indictment, it emerged that Perizat Kairat does not have a complete secondary education. In 2018, she founded the Halyk Foundation and the birgemiz.kz platform, which gained popularity during the pandemic.
The investigation established that on 14 September 2021, Kairat falsified the minutes of the founding meeting, signing on behalf of ten people. The first attempt to register the association "Biz Birgemiz Kazakhstan" failed due to its name matching an existing organisation. She then changed the name to "Biz Birgemiz Qazaqstan 2030" and re-submitted the documents with forged signatures.
FINANCIAL SCHEME AND EXPENDITURE
Prosecutors detailed the mechanism of the embezzlement. From October 2021 to April 2024, Kairat opened ten accounts in three banks in her name and one account in her mother's name. To promote the project, she managed Instagram and Facebook pages with a combined audience of more than 560,000 followers.
Spending on personal needs drew particular attention. Between April and June 2024, Kairat, under the guise of official business trips, transferred 12.6 million tenge to a travel company for trips to China, Russia, the UAE and the UK. A further 3.3 million tenge went towards treatment at a dental clinic, and even a Netflix subscription was paid for from the donations.
PURCHASES OF LUXURY ITEMS
The indictment states that after "laundering" the money, Kairat purchased expensive property. On 25 May 2024, she bought a Rolex watch for 6.9 million tenge, and on 27 May — an apartment in the Highvill Ishim Gold complex for 205 million tenge in cash.
Vehicles were also purchased: a Lexus LX 600 for 80.2 million tenge and a Mercedes-Benz S 450 for 77.2 million tenge. The total amount spent on personal purposes was almost 2 billion tenge.
SCALE OF THE DAMAGE
According to the prosecution, of the 2.08 billion tenge collected to help flood victims, only 920 million was directed towards charity to cover up the scheme. The remaining 1.9 billion tenge was used for the personal needs of the defendants.
The criminal case consists of 109 volumes. Both defendants plead not guilty and refuse to give testimony. Gaini Alashbayeva is under house arrest.