Tengrinews.kz - A foreigner detained on the Kazakh-Chinese border with a batch of electronic vapes was convicted in the Zhetysu region.
Tengrinews.kz - A foreigner detained on the Kazakh-Chinese border with a batch of electronic vapes was convicted in the Zhetysu region.
A 35-year-old citizen of Kyrgyzstan was in the dock, accused of illegally importing vapes into Kazakhstan. Responsibility for this offense is provided for by Article 301-1 of the Penal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan. The woman was detained in July 2024 by employees of The Khorgos International Center for Border Cooperation in the Panfilovsky district of the Zhetysu region.
As reported in court, the foreigner purchased 50 vapes in China, which she tried to bring to Kazakhstan. When crossing the border, the devices were discovered during an inspection, which served as the basis for initiating a criminal case.
"The guilt of the foreigner, in addition to her confession, was fully confirmed by the testimony of witnesses and the expert's conclusion, according to which the said goods are identified as electronic devices (vapes) intended for single use. The samples of the goods contain nicotine, but do not contain plant particles of tobacco. The Panfilov District Court found the defendant guilty and sentenced her to six months in prison," said Nursultan Orynbassarov, press secretary of the Zhetysu Regional Court.
The convicted woman will serve her sentence in a minimum security correctional facility. The court added that the disposable electronic cigarettes seized as material evidence were sent for destruction.
The sentence has not entered into legal force.
Earlier, a resident of Kostanay imported vapes from the Russian Federation to distribute them throughout Kazakhstan via a Telegram channel, according to the Financial Monitoring Agency (FMA). During a search of the suspect's residence, nearly 7,500 vapes valued at about 45 million tenge were discovered and seized.