The Department of the Financial Monitoring Agency (AFM) in Shymkent is conducting a pre-trial investigation against the former chairman of JSC 'Agricultural Financial Support Fund' Zhandar Omarov.
According to the agency's press service, he is suspected of embezzling budget funds allocated for the establishment of intensive apple orchards. The investigation believes that the suspect used his official powers to inflate the cost of work and equipment.
To implement the scheme, he brought in an affiliated person — the director of LLP 'Green Mart Kazakhstan', who registered approximately 20 companies in the names of nominees to fictitiously participate in the programme as lessees.
It is reported that these firms did not conduct any actual operations and did not take part in the project.
The AFM stated that, based on false applications, documentation was submitted to the Fund seeking leasing totalling 1.4 billion tenge, which was subsequently approved.
Moreover, without holding competitive procedures, the sole participant — the controlled LLP 'Green Mart Kazakhstan' — was designated as the supplier.
After the funds were received, part of the amount was transferred to the accounts of affiliated organisations and cashed out. The equipment was supplied at an inflated price, and the work was not completed.
The damage to the state is estimated at 430 million tenge. The former chairman of the Fund has been placed in custody for two months.
Previously, in the same case, the former managing director of the Fund, Murat Iskakov, and the director of LLP 'Green Mart Kazakhstan', Ruslan Sazynbek, were sentenced.
It was reported that Iskakov, acting in the interests of the supplier, accepted the apple orchards into operation even though they did not meet the technical specifications and declared parameters. The defendants were then sentenced to 8 years' imprisonment each with the confiscation of four cars.