In the Akmola region, a court has sentenced 21 members of an organized crime group who illegally obtained loans in the names of unsuspecting citizens, reports infohub.kz.
According to the regional prosecutor's office, the criminals fraudulently gained access to personal data of Kazakhstani citizens and used it to obtain loans from second-tier banks and microfinance organizations. As a result, victims and financial institutions suffered damages totaling approximately 2 billion tenge.
"On August 5, the Specialized Interdistrict Criminal Court of the Akmola region found all 21 defendants guilty. Depending on their role, they received sentences ranging from 5 to 10 years in prison," the prosecutor's office said.
In addition to prison terms, the court ordered the confiscation of property acquired through criminal means, including apartments in Almaty, Lexus LX 570, Toyota Land Cruiser 200, Toyota Camry cars, and other vehicles.
The verdict has not yet entered into legal force.
Earlier, Kursiv reported on the trial of members of another criminal group in Astana. More than ten people persuaded citizens to take car loans, promising to pay them 1-2 million tenge and "close the debts themselves." In reality, the cars were resold and taken abroad. More than 100 people became victims, and the fraudsters managed to obtain 165 cars.