Ablyazov's wife under recognizance not to leave Kazakhstan

The wife of former BTA Bank chairman Mukhtar Ablyazov, Alma Shalabayeva, who has been deported to Kazakhstan from Italy with her daughter, is now under the written pledge not to leave the country, Tengrinews.kz reports citing Nurdaulet Suindikov, the official representative of Kazakhstan General Prosecutor’s office. “During a check the police found that Shalabayeva was staying in Italy with a fake passport allegedly issued in Central Africa in the name of Ayan Alma. The check showed that the passport was a fake one, which is considered a crime in Italy. According to Alma Shalabayeva, Italian authorities decided to deport her with her daughter to Kazakhstan after her Kazakhstan citizenship was confirmed by Kazakhstan embassy in Italy upon a request of the italian law-enforcement authorities. Shalabayeva is currently under a written pledge not to leave the country,” Suindikov said at the briefing in Kazakhstan President’s Central Communications Service. He added that Italian prosecutors found all the actions of the police and the court ruling on deportation legal and justified. “Thus, all the statements Ablyazov is now making about alleged violation of Shalabayeva’s and their daughter’s rights and freedoms by Italian competent authorities are groundless,” Suindikov said. According to representative of the General Prosecutor’s office, the efforts to find and apprehend Mukhtar Ablyazov are still underway. Besides, he reminded that earlier Kazakhstan law-enforcement authorities found that fake Kazakhstran passports had been illegally issued through bribery and forgery to Ablyazov’s family members, including Alma Shalabayeva and their daughter, during the actual absence of the recipients in Kazakhstan. This criminal case against employees of Atyrau migration police is still in court. “The investigators are currently checking Shalabayeva’s implication in the said crime,” Suindikov added. Earlier Tengrinews.kz English reported that the wife and daughter of former head of BTA Bank Mukhtar Ablyazov were apprehended in Rome and deported to Kazakhstan. They are currently staying at their relatives. According to Kazakhstan Foreign Ministry, the consular department of Kazakhstan embassy in Italy issued certificates ordering deportation of Alma Shalabayeva and Alua Ablyazova to Kazakhstan. The certificates were issued on a request of the Italian authorities who deported the said persons to Kazakhstan for violation of the Italian legislation. By Altynai Zhumzhumina