More than 40 groups that were exerting a negative influence on young people have been identified across Kazakhstan in 2026, and over 100 people have been detained for various crimes and offenses, the website infohub.kz reports.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the country is carrying out dedicated work to protect school and university students from extortion. Law enforcement officers shut down the activities of four groups that committed such crimes against minors.
"At the same time, police are countering organized criminal groups, including those seeking to draw young people into illegal activity. Since the start of the year, 47 criminal cases linked to organized crime groups have been opened. More than 240 leaders and members of criminal groups are being held criminally liable," said Quandyq Alpys, a representative of the Interior Ministry's department for combating organized crime.
In addition, since the start of the year police have held more than two thousand preventive events in schools, colleges and other educational organizations. Particular attention is being paid to preventing extortion and the spread of criminal ideology and the romanticization of a criminal lifestyle.