Marat Beketayev. Photo: nur.kz
Former Justice Minister of Kazakhstan Marat Beketayev has been sentenced to nine years in prison with confiscation of property, according to Daniyar Bigaidarov, a spokesperson for the country’s Anti-Corruption Agency, as reported by Kursiv.kz.
“The criminal case against former Justice Minister Beketayev was investigated under charges of fraud, large-scale embezzlement, and illegal involvement in entrepreneurial activity,” Bigaidarov stated.
Further details of the investigation were not disclosed, as the case was classified.
Beketayev was arrested in October 2023 as part of a broader government campaign to trace and recover assets taken abroad. He had served as Minister of Justice from 2016 to 2022.
Authorities allege that Beketayev lobbied for the interests of an affiliated company by signing annual contracts for services that were knowingly unnecessary, causing substantial financial damage to the state.
A few days after his arrest, Deputy Prosecutor General Asset Chindaliyev told reporters that Beketayev had been detained while attempting to flee Kazakhstan.
Kazakh media reported that Beketayev was initially questioned as a witness and later became a suspect in a case involving Bolashak Consulting Group, a company suspected of moving state assets abroad. This same firm had previously represented Kazakhstan in high-profile international litigation, including a dispute with Moldovan businessmen Gabriel and Anatol Stati.
