Karim Masimov sentenced to 18 years

The Specialized Interdistrict Criminal Court of Astana has completed the trial marked top secret against Ex-Chairman of the National Security Committee (KNB) of Kazakhstan Karim Masimov and his deputies Anuar Sadykulov, Daulet Yergozhin and Marat Osipov. All of them have been determined guilty of treason, coup d’état and abuse of power.

The court sentenced Masimov to 18 years in jail with confiscation of his property and a life-long ban from serving in the public sector. His deputy Sadykulov has been sentenced to 16 years in prison with a life-long ban from working within the government authorities.

Yergozhin was found guilty and sentenced to 15 years in jail with a life-long ban from working within the government authorities.

Osipov, the third ex-deputy head of KNB Marat, has been determined guilty of abuse of power and sentenced to three years in jail with a life-long ban from working within the government authorities.

All four men are no longer generals and their state decorations have been revoked. Moreover, the government has seized more than 1$24 million from them.

Even though their sentences have been announced, it hasn’t yet entered into force.

Masimov was accused of treason and arrested on January 6, 2022. Later all three of his deputies were arrested as well. All four men were accused of violent upheaval and abuse of power. The trial of Masimov started on November 18, 2022. Two days later, his former chief Ex-President Nursultan Nazarbayev gave a public comment about the case.

«Masimov had stood by my side for years but how should I have known [his intentions]? Had Jesus Christ known about Judas, who used to sit next to him? We aren’t gods. Let’s wait for the trial to complete and then, I think, we will learn the truth,» Nazarbayev said.

In January 2023, Prosecutor General Berik Asylov pointed to Masimov as the key figure behind the January 2022 unrest.

In March, Interior Minister Marat Akhmetzhanov talked about the potential release of Masimov from jail due to his health problems. According to the minister, it is quite possible if health experts are sure the ex-chairman of KNB has such problems and a court decides to release him. There is a relevant law and Masimov can demand the same treatment as any other citizen of the country, Akhmetzhanov noted.

In January 2022, people took to the streets in Zhanaozen, a small town in the Western part of Kazakhstan protesting against the liquified gas price surge. The next day, protests arose all over the country and the situation escalated. Some regions were initially peaceful before turning violent. Protesters set official buildings on fire, looted stores and fought the police. The country’s authorities turned off the internet and cracked down on the protests with the help of military forces. As a result, 220 people died, including 19 law enforcement and military officers.

In June 2022, Aset Chindaliyev, the deputy prosecutor general, said that the agency arrested eight KNB officers and one policeman. This followed a public outcry over many cases of torture of detained protesters by the police.