Former Director of Caspiy Football Club Faces Trial in Aqtau

A court in Aqtau has opened a high-profile criminal case against former football executive Yerzhan Dzhambirov, Orda.kz reports.

The former director of Caspiy Football Club is charged with large-scale embezzlement, extortion, and participation in an organized criminal group.

According to the court database, the case has been classified, and the press service of the Mangystau Regional Court told Orda.kz that a defendant requested the trial be closed to the media and public.

Orda.kz still learned that three additional defendants are on trial alongside Dzhambirov: Saken Smagul, Askyn Kaumbayev, and Meiram Orazuly. Orazuly is accused of organizing the criminal group, while the others are charged with participating in it. All three also face charges of large-scale extortion and hooliganism.

Earlier, investigators reported that Dzhambirov and his associates were suspected of theft and extortion; however, new evidence has emerged during the investigation, leading to the addition of charges related to organizing a criminal group.

The prosecutor’s office also stated that Dzhambirov, with the help of two acquaintances, attempted to pressure a club employee into changing testimony. According to prosecutors, the former club director extorted 15 million tenge from the victim.

In December 2024, it was reported that a criminal investigation was underway in the Mangystau region regarding the theft of 27 million tenge allocated for FC Caspiy’s training camps. Orda.kz contacted the current club director, Nurzhan Zhalgasbayev, who confirmed that the theft took place in 2023.

Dzhambirov led FC Caspiy from September 2022 to April 2023, stepping down after a scandal in which the club sent players to a training camp in Turkey but failed to pay for their two-week stay at a five-star hotel in Antalya.

Orda.kz previously reported that the Turkish company organizing the camp had been pursuing legal action against the club over unpaid services and accommodation on the Mediterranean coast.

Original Author: Dinara Bekbolayeva