Kazakhstan Foreign Ministry comments Italy's decision to reverse Ablyazov wife's deportation

Kazakhstan Foreign Ministry has commended Italy's reversing of its decision to deport the wife of a former head of Kazakhstan's BTA Bank Mukhtar Ablyazov, Tengrinews.kz reports. “We are aware of Italy's decision to reverse the deportation order on Alma Shalabayeva and her daughter to Kazakhstan that was effected on May 31 by the Italian authorities. The deportation order is Italy's internal affair of Italy. Foreign citizens deported by state authorities are normally banned from entering the country that deported them. Reversing of the deportation order of Alma Shalabayeva and her daughter means that Italian authorities have return her the right to visit their country,” the Ministry’s official message says. The deportation violated no parts of the Kazakhstan legislation. All the rules and procedures related to deportation of Shalabayeva and her daughter to their homeland were properly observed, including issuance of return certificates by Kazakhstan embassy’s consular department in Rome. Ablyazov’s wife and their daughter are currently residing with her parents in Almaty. Shalabayeva is neither jailed nor under home arrest. Meanwhile, she is one of the persons involved in a legal case not related to her deportation from Italy, but related to illegal issue of Kazakhstan passports to her and her husband’s relatives. Kazakhstan law-enforcement authorities have filed requests to their foreign colleagues to track the use of the fake Kazakh passport by Shalabayeva. A group of sever people was recently convicted in Kazakhstan for forging documents. According to the investigators, in 2009-2012 the forged documents were issued to the banker’s children (Madiyar, Aldiyar and Alua), as well as Syrym Shalabayev (Ablyazov’s brother-in-law) and his family members (Zhanna Shalabayeva, Aigul Shalabayeva, Salima Shalabayeva and Alma Shalabayeva). “To reduce the risk of Shalabayeva leaving the country until the end of the investigation, she is under a written pledge not to leave Almaty (that she has voluntarily selected as the city of residence for the investigation period). Shalabayeva enjoys all the rights and freedoms provided by the Kazakhstan legislation to the country's rightful citizens. Kazakhstan fully observes the international law and its international obligations," the message says. Mukhtar Ablyazov is under investigation in several countries, including European ones. He is charged with major fraud and embezzlement. UK, Russian and Kazakh courts have issued arrest warrants on Ablyazov. "Shalabayeva is not accused of any of her husbands crimes and she will not be a subject to persecution for his deeds,” the official message states. Ablyazov is accused of embezzlement of $5 billion from Kazakhstan’s BTA Bank. The businessman fled Kazakhstan in 2009 after the criminal case was initiated against him. Ablyazov received an asylum in Great Britain. Kazakhstan is requesting the banker’s extradition on accusations of major fraud and siphoning off of the bank’s funds via dummy companies. According to the latest information, Ablyazov may now be in France .