In Karaganda, a sentence has been handed down to four people accused of creating and participating in an organised criminal group (OCG) that exploited a disabled man for several years. According to the investigation, the defendants used violence, threats, and psychological pressure to force the victim to beg and hand over the collected money daily.
As reported by the Telegram channel «Halyqstan», the defendants included three men and one woman. According to the criminal case materials, in 2015, one of the accused took a disabled man without arms and legs, who was begging in the city centre, under his wing. The offender used violence and threats of retribution to obtain the victim’s takings daily.
In 2020, the accused housed the disabled man along with his wife in a residential building in the settlement of Aktas. In November of the same year, the couple had a daughter. As stated in the case materials, the defendant took the child and her documents and gave the girl to his niece to raise. The investigation considers this an additional tool for pressuring the man.
Even while under investigation in 2023, the organiser continued to control the victim's actions. Using a mobile phone, he formed a criminal group that included his niece, her common-law husband, and a close acquaintance.
Members of the OCG took the money the disabled man received from begging — from 20 to 40 thousand tenge daily. It is noted that these funds were used to repay a car loan and for the personal needs of the group members. The exploitation continued until April 2024.
The court found the defendants guilty on all charges brought and sentenced the organiser to 17 years in prison, and the other participants to 12 years in prison each.
Additionally, the court ordered the convicted to pay the victims 6 million tenge in compensation for moral damages. The verdict has not yet entered into legal force.