In the Tolebi District Court of the Turkestan Region, a criminal case against 20 people involved in organising and participating in a financial pyramid was heard.
According to the press service of the Turkestan Regional Court, three defendants led a structural unit of the financial pyramid 'Chia Tai Tianqing Pharmaceutical Group', while the other 17 defendants recruited new participants through advertising.
From 2022 to 2023, under the pretext of investing in the development of a medicinal drug, they caused damage to 279 victims totalling over 391 million tenge.
The state prosecution insisted on sentences of imprisonment. Some of the defendants requested a punishment not involving a prison term, while others insisted on full acquittal.
Ultimately, on 23 June, the three organisers were sentenced to between 5.5 and 7 years' imprisonment. Sixteen participants were given restriction of liberty for 2 to 3 years. One of the defendants was sentenced to 3 years' imprisonment, but with a 5-year suspended execution of the sentence.
The victims were recognised as having the right to file a civil claim, the amount of which will be determined through civil proceedings. The verdict has not yet entered into force.
Recall that in September last year, a sentence was passed in Astana on the head of a branch of the financial pyramid 'Chia Tai Pharmaceutical'. The defendant had attracted depositors' funds under the guise of investing in a pharmaceutical plant. As a result, 12 victims lost 29.2 million tenge.