A court in Almaty has sentenced the acting director, later director, of Center No. 1 for the Support of Children in Need of Special Social Services, who was accused of embezzling and misappropriating budget funds, according to infohub.kz.

According to case materials reviewed in the court chamber on the Supreme Court's website, A. served as acting director of the center from 2024 and was appointed director in early 2026. His duties included oversight of the institution's personnel and financial-economic processes, including the hiring and processing of employees, the calculation and payment of wages, and the movement of budget funds.

As an official, according to the verdict, he first fictitiously hired two people who handed over their bank cards to him but in fact did not perform any job duties. He intended to cash out the wages paid to them and dispose of the money at his own discretion. Several more people were then hired in the same manner, handing over their wages to him.

In total, the fictitious employees were paid wages amounting to 6,471,074 tenge, from which mandatory payments were withheld. In fact, 5,300,452 tenge in budget funds were transferred to their accounts.

"Thus, A., being a person equated with persons authorized to perform state functions, committed the theft of another's entrusted property through appropriation and embezzlement, using his official position on a large scale, that is, a criminal offense under paragraphs 1 and 2 of part 3 of Article 189 of the Criminal Code," the verdict states.

It is noted that he was charged with 5,300,452 tenge as theft and 1,170,622 tenge as embezzlement in favor of third parties. A. himself admitted guilt and repented.

The court took into account his admission of guilt, sincere repentance, first conviction, the presence of a minor child whom A., as a widower, is raising alone, full compensation for the material damage caused, and the absence of claims from the injured party.

Ultimately, the court found A. guilty and sentenced him to two years of imprisonment to be served in a minimum-security penal institution, with lifelong deprivation of the right to hold positions in the civil service. A.'s serving of the sentence was deferred for five years.