The inter-district criminal court of Astana has sentenced four defendants in a case of large-scale fraud. The accused - Talypzhan Niyazov, Mukhit and Maulen Belamanov, as well as Nurbol Rasilov – offered assistance in obtaining lucrative contracts through participation in tenders, appointment to a position in a national company, and the dismissal of a university rector who was hindering a business.
According to the Telegram channel «Kozachkov offside», citing the investigation, the story began in August 2020, when Niyazov, who practised alternative medicine, met an advisor to the director of a large construction company, Askar Karim.
Niyazov claimed that through influential connections he could help the company secure a tender for projects from Tengizchevroil LLP. In the autumn of 2021, he and his accomplices received a first tranche of $100,000. In the spring of 2022, further transfers followed, but the promised contract was never obtained.
Later, according to the criminal case materials, Niyazov offered Karim assistance in finding a high-ranking job at JSC NC «KazMunayGas» (KMG). For credibility, a meeting was arranged in Astana, which was presented as an «interview». Askar Karim was later assured he would soon be appointed deputy chairman at KMG. As a result, the victim transferred more than 150 million tenge to the criminals.
The second episode concerns the rector of the Civil Aviation Academy, Beken Seidakhmetov.
«He took over the educational institution in 2019, after which cadets stopped undergoing flight training at the Training Center Part-FCL LLP. There is a logical explanation for this - a plane previously owned by the company crashed, killing two people,» the statement reads.
According to the investigation, the former director of the company «Training Center Part-FCL», Leonid Sokolov, was looking for ways to influence the academy's leadership and resume cooperation. In 2022, the defendants in the case offered him intermediary services: Maulen Belamanov allegedly promised to arrange the rector's dismissal for a fee. Sokolov transferred $100,000 to Belamanov, but the change in leadership did not happen.
The case also involves another victim, who was offered assistance in recovering a debt. He initially agreed but later learned that the recovery method might involve force. The man ultimately refused to participate but, as he claims, suffered damages in the amount of $50,000.
The court found all four defendants guilty of fraud. Two of them received 6 years in prison, and the other two were sentenced to 6.8 years in prison. The verdict has not yet entered into legal force.