An investigation is underway in Almaty into Nurlan Zhumasultanov, the former head of the airline Bek Air. Journalist Mikhail Kozachkov reported the development on his Telegram channel, according to infohub.kz.
According to Kozachkov, a court authorized the house arrest of the former Bek Air chief on September 9. The journalist noted that the criminal case is not connected to the 2019 plane crash.
"Alongside this criminal case, another one was being investigated, related to the disappearance of engines from Fokker-100 aircraft stored at Almaty airport. There were no witnesses and no video of the theft, but after the plane crash one lead emerged. One of the stolen engines was installed on the crashed Fokker-100 — this was established by its serial number. It turns out that someone removed the heavy unit from a mothballed aircraft and then transferred it to an airliner belonging to Bek Air," the author wrote in the post.
The Main Transport Prosecutor's Office confirmed to a NUR.KZ correspondent that an investigation is underway in the case. "The case is being investigated by the central apparatus of the NSC, with oversight carried out by the MTP. Other information is not subject to disclosure under Article 201 of the Criminal Procedure Code," the agency said.