Masimov faces a sentence of 17 years in prison

The former head of Kazakhstan’s National Security Committee Karim Masimov faces 17 years in prison, said Berik Asylov, prosecutor general of the country.

During the plenary meeting of Mazhilis, the lower chamber of Kazakhstan’s parliament Asylov told deputies that the former chairman of the National Security Committee is accused of committing a range of serious crimes including treason and faces a punishment of 17 years in prison. This is the maximal punishment for this kind of crime. However, only a court can decide for sure whether Masimov is guilty and what kind of punishment he should face, Asylov noted.

Masimov was accused of treason and detained on January 6, 2022. Also, the law enforcement officials have detained Masimov’s deputies Anuar Sadykulov, Daulet Ergozhin and Marat Osipov. All of them are charged with attempted coup d’etat and abuse of power. Last week the National Security Committee published photos of Masimov’s luxury mansion, cars and millions of dollars in cash they found during a search in his house.