Former PM Serik Akhmetov accuses witness of perjury

    Former Prime Minister, Serik Akhmetov has accused a key prosecution witness of giving false testimony in the major corruption trial involving former senior officials in the Karaganda Oblast.
    The trial is taking place at the Karaganda Regional Specialized Inter-District Criminal Court.
    The main prosecution witness is CEO of Gorsvet MSE in Karaganda, Kadyrbek Abdirov - was questioned on September 4 on certain deals involving StalTsink LLP.
    Abdirov gave testimony claiming the Akhmetov family-owned StalTsink company had affiliation with StalTsink Trading House LLP and Dor Service Plus Astana LLP.
    He claimed that from 2010 to 2014, all contracts granted to Gorsvet were awarded without observing public procurement rules.
    Akhmetov denied the claims.
    “During this period, Gorsvet received from the city budget more than 3 billion tenge. StalTsink Trading House LLP received orders worth a little more than 300 million tenge, or about 10% of the total contract sum. What kind of affiliation in this case are you talking about?” Serik Akhmetov asked Abdirov.
    Akhmetov's lawyer Nikolay Lesnik appealed to the court to declare Abdirov's testimony as perjury. Judge Islamkhan Yessenbayev 'left the defense petition open' (original - KNL).
    Akhmetov stands accused of accepting bribes in exchange for his assistance in gaining contracts for the construction of infrastructure at the Metallurgy and Metal Processing Industiral Park. He is also accused of undermining the authority of the government and causing damages amounting to 1 billion tenge, according to Akipress.