45 Organized Crime Cases Reach Court in Kazakhstan

In Kazakhstan this year, 45 criminal cases against members of organized criminal groups have been sent to court. This was reported by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, according to infohub.kz.

"This year, 45 criminal cases against members of organized criminal groups have been sent to court," the Ministry of Internal Affairs said.

The geography and nature of the crimes varied. In the Karaganda Region, criminal groups stole property from enterprises; in Almaty, they altered vehicle VIN codes; and in Kyzylorda, they extorted money from entrepreneurs.

In the Karaganda Region, the organizer and ten members of a criminal group received up to 13 years in prison for stealing property from mining and processing enterprises. In another case, the leader of an organized criminal group and four members were sentenced to up to ten years. They stole property from a large enterprise using fraudulent schemes.

In Almaty, a court sentenced 13 members of an organized criminal group to up to eight years. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, they illegally registered vehicles, altered VIN codes and information in information systems, and defrauded buyers when selling cars.

The longest sentence reported by the agency was given to the organizer of a drug trafficking group in Astana — 17 years in prison. Five of his accomplices were sentenced to up to 16 years.

In Kyzylorda, eight members of local criminal circles received up to 11 years in prison for systematic extortion, including from entrepreneurs. The investigation also charged them with leading an organized criminal group and participating in its activities.

Earlier, Kursiv reported on a joint operation by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the National Security Committee, and the Prosecutor General's Office against organized criminal groups. As a result, 29 people were detained in 10 regions of the country. Authorities seized 25 weapons, 2 grenades, and 236 rounds of ammunition.

Meanwhile, Prosecutor General of Kazakhstan Berik Asylov stated that the overall crime rate in the country decreased by 11% in the first half of the year.