Officers from the organised crime unit (UOCU) of the Aktobe Regional Police Department detained a group of individuals who had orchestrated a scheme to steal 'social' gas from a local field.
According to Polisia.kz, the suspects are employees of a gas extraction company.
"Through technical manipulation of measuring instruments on fuel storage tanks, they accumulated unaccounted-for gas, which they later sold using railway transport," the statement reads.
Police intercepted 12 railway carriages carrying the stolen gas while they were en route from the field to the point of sale. The relevant authorities have commissioned forensic examinations, the results of which will determine the total value of the damage.
Previously, officers from the organised crime unit of the Kyzylorda Regional Police Department detained suspects in the theft of petroleum products from an enterprise in Kyzylorda.
Workers and security guards at the industrial site were involved in the criminal scheme. Police conducted over 20 searches and seized more than 25 tonnes of stolen petroleum products.