Case on Embezzling Fuel in Military Units Underway

In the Aqmola garrison’s Military Court, the main trial on the case of embezzling fuel and lubricants in the National Guard’s military units has begun. Orda is covering the trial.

And If There Is War?

It turned out that there was more to meets the eye in the case on the embezzling of fuel in the National Guard. For three years, fuel and lubricants intended for military equipment were stolen at three military units located in Ilyinka. The crime was discovered by chance during the January Events, when planes could not take to the sky because of a lack of fuel.

After the January events, when the equipment was standing near Akorda and there was no fuel, the Guard’s command requested to borrow from the supplier of the previous year. They supplied fuel for 64 million and the equipment was refueled. Then a significant embezzlement was discovered in military units,said lawyer Samat Syrlybayev. 

Auditors from the Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan were later sent to the military units. Specialists of the National Guard helped them to understand the situation. However, they could not identify the theft immediately.

There have been audits before, but of a selective nature. A large group of specialists should work for a continuous audit. Only on the second attempt they revealed the embezzlement, because there was a financial service employee in the military unit who covered up everything. He gave incorrect information on accounting for the auditing auditors, explained Syrlybayev.

The investigation dragged on for four months. The scheme for embezzling was eventually discovered.

There is a heating center in the military unit, where ordinary fuel is stored. Aviation was mixed with it, the main part of which was allocated and sold, the lawyer said.

It turned out that from 2017 to 2019, fuel in the amount of 488 million tenge was stolen in military units.

In 2017, fuel was stolen, and in 2018, debts closed. So they got as far as 2020, until the facts of embezzlement  emerged.

Loose Ends

Initially, 140 people were involved in the case, including representatives from the main command of the National Guard along with special regulatory and law enforcement agencies. However, only five defendants appeared before the court (according to Article 189 part 4, paragraph 2 of the Criminal Code) from among the sergeant and corporal staff.

In May, they decided to tie up all the loose ends and make Nurzhan Dzhaksybayev, the head of the rear department, the odd man out because he began to uncover the embezzlement. However, Nurzhan came to this position before the facts of embezzlement in July 2020. In addition, he is the eighth in the hierarchy of subordination. They excluded all the people from the military counterintelligence, the Prosecutor General's Office, the military investigation department who knew and covered up this theft. There were commanders of military units, deputy rear commanders, the head of the service, battalion commanders, companies. The whole military unit knew that everything was being stolen and written off. Also, buyers of cheap aviation fuel were removed from the case, who earned the most, and pinned everything on an innocent person, said lawyer Syrlybayev.

Where Did The Millions Go?

According to the lawyer, acting on superiors' orders, it was decided to tie up loose ends in order to resolve the matter in-house, as during the investigation unflattering facts about the servicemen surfaced.

When they began questioning, an unpleasant situation was revealed – the house of the deputy commander-in-chief of the National Guard, General Omarkulov, was heated with stolen fuel. Commanders of military units made renovations in their offices. There is also direct evidence in the case that the money received after the sale of stolen fuel was used to pay for a sauna and hire prostitutes, the lawyer said.

During the court session it became clear that one of the defendants was pressured during the investigation.

"The investigating authorities put pressure on me. They said that if I didn't tell them what they needed, they would put me in jail. According to the first episode, it was initially said that 14 cars with fuel drove in, and then it changed to 39. During the investigation, I said that the heads of the service are tied to the case of embezzlement, but they are currently absent," the defendant Espembetov said.

Two defendants plead not guilty – the head of the rear department Nurzhan Dzhaksybayev and the deputy commander of the rear unit, Aktanov. The other three, including the warehouse managers, partially admit to committing the crimes.

Original Author: Rayana Batyr

DISCLAIMER: This is a translated piece. The text has been modified, the content is the same. Please refer to the original piece in Russian for accuracy.