Scandal around "Aria-Zhana Astana", Controlled by Satybaldy, Not Subsiding

Former director of TOO "Aria-Zhana Astana" Gani Bekbosynov was sentenced to four years for tax evasion. Last week, information emerged that he intends to appeal the sentence. Orda.kz investigated how the financial fraud surfaced and who appointed Bekbosynov as the company's director.

TOO "Aria-Zhana Astana," controlled by Gulmira Satybaldy, participated in significant state projects through tenders. The company built Nazarbayev Intellectual Schools, the ice palace "Khalyk Arena," and supervised the infamous construction of the residential complex "Vostochka."

Transactions

The investigation established that Gani Bekbosynov, as the LLC's director, entered into fictitious transactions with enterprises to reduce the tax burden.

Namely, he overstated the expenditure part, understated the amount of taxable turnover for mutual settlements with enterprises, looked for people who had the opportunity to cash out money and provide primary accounting documents for a fee for subsequent reflection of data in tax returns. This gave him the opportunity not to pay VAT amounts and deduct the amount of mutual settlements, thereby not paying CIT, follows from the case materials.

The court found the tax reports on Aria-Zhana Astana's transactions with companies such as MAKVIK LLP, ASG Building LLP, AJ Standard LLP, BMB-81 Company LLP, Gold Sand LLP, Astana KRG Stroy-2017 LLP, Almaly-Service + LLP, and TM Engineering LLP illegal. The damage to the state amounted to almost half a billion tenge.

The suspect enterprises have no assets, transport, or funds. It was established that the work was not actually performed. By his criminal actions, Bekbosynov caused damage to the state on an especially large scale in the total amount of 508,688,604 tenge,the court ruled. 

The defendant pleaded not guilty. He claimed that Gulmira Satybaldy, a founder (stakeholder) of the holding company JSC Baur Kazakhstan, which included TOO Aria-Zhana Astana, made all major decisions regarding the company's finances.

Kairat Satybaldyuly's ex-wife owned 34% of the joint-stock company shares, her former in-law Abay Zhunusov owned 33%, and Aibatyr Zhumagulov owned the other 33%.

As the primary manager, I was involved in production and construction but not in financial and economic activities,
Gani Bekbosynov stated in court.

The court still found him guilty under Part 3 of Article 245 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Under the amnesty law, Bekbosynov was sentenced to four years of imprisonment. He will serve his sentence in a minimum-security colony.

His lawyer, Marat Mynzhanov, told Orda.kz he would file an appeal.

In-law of Satybaldy's Former In-law

Orda.kz has learned that Abay Zhunusov appointed Gani Bekbosynov director of TOO Aria-Zhana Astana. Zhunusov is currently suing Gulmira Satybaldy; Zhunusov was married to her sister. The trial is in the specialized inter-district court of Almaty. It is expected that Bekbosynov will testify as a witness. Incidentally, he is Zhunusov's in-law.

We also discovered that when Satybaldy was arrested over Tursengali Alaguzov's statement about arbitrariness, Gani Bekbosynov turned himself in to the investigative bodies and admitted to having stolen someone else's property. 

He then attempted to warm up to Gulmira Satybaldy, hoping she would pay off all the debts of TOO "Aria-Zhana Astana." But she dismissed this, however, as she had already lost a considerable amount of money, compensating for damages.

Aria-Zhana Astana LLC is a participant in about 200 legal proceedings.

Original Author: Aliya Askarova

DISCLAIMER: This is a translated piece. The text has been modified, the content is the same. Please refer to the original piece published on 03/07/24 in Russian for accuracy.