Officers of the National Security Committee (NSC) have intercepted the sale of smuggled uranium in Saryagash. The supply of nuclear material came from Uzbekistan.
According to Ratel.kz, in the summer of 2022, a 49-year-old resident of the Keles District of the Turkestan Region, Gabit Dambayev (name changed), came to the attention of NSC officers. The man was seeking buyers for nuclear material in the Turkestan Region.
NSC operatives discovered that a certain citizen of Uzbekistan had contacted Dambayev, offering to sell 1 kg of the isotope "Uranium 238/235". The seller claimed that if a buyer were found for $120,000, the cargo would be smuggled into Kazakhstan.
Subsequently, an NSC officer joined the operation, posing as a buyer to facilitate the sale of the dangerous goods. He met with Dambayev and handed over the money. After contacting the supplier, Dambayev stated that the entire kilogram of uranium could not be delivered at once, only in portions of 200 grams.
The supplier told Dambayev that a package containing the radioactive material would be handed over by an intermediary who was unaware of the situation. Upon receiving the goods, Dambayev passed them to the "buyer" from the NSC.
Just a day later, an official expert conclusion arrived from the Institute of Nuclear Physics of the Ministry of Energy, stating that the substance did not belong to the category of nuclear or radioactive materials.
After this, the NSC officer contacted Dambayev, who in turn called the supplier. The latter reported that it was a test of the channel and the buyer, and that the real shipment would now follow.
In August 2022, Dambayev received from the supplier a sealed glass capsule containing a yellow, putty-like substance inside. It was reported to be a "sample" of the goods weighing 10.5 grams. The buyer, upon receiving the goods, sent them again for analysis to the Institute of Nuclear Physics.
After some time, a response came from there: "The provided substance falls into the category of nuclear materials. It has been confirmed to be 'Uranium 238/235'." Later, the seller of the radioactive nuclear goods was caught red-handed.
"A criminal case was opened under Article 283, Part 2 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan (illegal acquisition, storage, transportation of nuclear materials for the purpose of sale). The investigation lasted nearly a year. During this time, Dambayev was in custody, held in the NSC detention facility. He fully admitted his guilt", the report states.
In the end, the Saryagash District Court found Dambayev guilty and sentenced him to 3 years of imprisonment. However, the court then took into account the time he had already served during the pre-trial investigation and commuted his sentence to a suspended one. The convicted man was released from custody in the courtroom. The fate of the supplier from Uzbekistan is not disclosed.