The appellate board upheld the sentence of the former head of the police department of the Markakol district of the East Kazakhstan region (EKR), Ruslan Seitkanov. He was found guilty of receiving 1 million tenge for general patronage of illegal exploration and gold mining. The court sentenced him to four years of imprisonment.
WHAT THE COURT ESTABLISHED
According to Hronika.kz, in spring 2025, an entrepreneur who intended to engage in gold mining in the Markakol district became acquainted with the head of the local police department.
Seitkanov knew that the company had no permits for artisanal mining. However, instead of suppressing the illegal activity, he, as the court established, agreed to general patronage. The police officer gave his subordinates instructions to conduct checks and obtain explanations, but the company was never brought to either criminal or administrative liability.
HOW GOLD WAS MINED WITHOUT PERMITS
According to the case materials, from May to October 2025, the company, using heavy machinery and hired workers, mined gold-bearing ore on an industrial scale in the mountainous area of the Markakol district.
The judicial board noted that the illegal activity continued despite the checks carried out. Damage to the environment is also mentioned, but its amount is not specified.
HOW MUCH MONEY THE POLICE OFFICER RECEIVED
After that, Seitkanov demanded 1 million tenge from the entrepreneur and received the money under the surveillance of officers of the National Security Committee (NSC). The next day, the police officer was detained.
During the search, 970 thousand tenge of the received sum was found on him. It was not possible to establish where the remaining 30 thousand tenge went.
WHY THE APPEAL DID NOT CHANGE THE SENTENCE
In the court of first instance, Seitkanov was found guilty under part 2 of article 366 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan ("Receiving a bribe"). He asked the appellate board to reclassify his actions to point 2 of part 3 of article 190 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan ("Fraud").
Seitkanov claimed that he had received the money by deception and abuse of trust, since he had in fact not provided the entrepreneur with the promised patronage. However, the appellate board did not agree with this position.
The court confirmed that the police officer personally received the money for inaction in favour of the bribe-giver and general patronage of illegal activity. The classification under article 366 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the imposed punishment were left unchanged — four years of imprisonment with lifelong deprivation of the right to hold positions in the public service.
