Kazakhstan's Cassation Court has upheld the sentence of a man convicted of large-scale fraud after he cheated an entrepreneur out of nearly 18.5 million tenge by promising to lease railway cars his organization did not have, infohub.kz reports.

According to the Cassation Court's Telegram channel, the court of first instance found the man guilty of large-scale fraud and sentenced him to 7 years in prison, ordering him to compensate the victim for the damages. The court also disclosed details of the case.

"In September 2022, M. posted an advertisement offering railway cars for lease that his organization neither owned nor leased. To appear credible, he provided the entrepreneur with a list of 36 cars with serial numbers and signed a contract under which he received an advance payment. Continuing the deception, M. sent the lessee a forged letter of guarantee for the supply of the cars. Knowing he was unable to fulfill the contract, he used the money as he saw fit. The damage to the victim amounted to 18.5 million tenge," the statement said.

The appellate instance also agreed with the decision in the case. However, in his cassation appeal, the convicted man asked for the judicial acts to be overturned and for his acquittal due to the absence of a criminal offense in his actions.

"The Cassation Court concluded that M. had no initial intention or real ability to lease the cars. Although another person was formally listed as the head of the partnership, M. effectively managed its activities, made decisions on contracts, and disposed of the funds received. He used a forged letter of guarantee to confirm delivery. The forgery of the letter was established by a court decision that has entered into legal force, which declared the lease agreement invalid. The companies named in the documents did not confirm contractual relationships ensuring the supply of the cars. These circumstances, together with the testimony of the victim and a witness, as well as payment documents, confirmed the intentional theft of money," the court explained.

Thus, the Cassation Court found no grounds to change the qualification or the imposed punishment, so the judicial acts were left unchanged.