Supreme Court provides response concerning Karim Massimov’s case

The Supreme Court of the Republic of Kazakhstan has not received the case of the former head of the National Security Committee, Karim Massimov, for cassation proceedings, nor is it currently under investigation. This information was provided by the Supreme Court in response to an official request from Kazinform News Agency.

To recall, in January 2022, it was announced that a pre-trial investigation into high treason had been initiated against Massimov. He was dismissed from his position as the Chairman of the National Security Committee on January 6, and on January 8, he was detained and placed in a pre-trial detention center.

At the end of August 2022, the case went to trial. In April 2023, the ex-head of the National Security Committee and his former deputies were found guilty of high treason, attempted violent seizure of power, abuse of power and official authority. The Massimov case itself was classified as “Top Secret”.

Massimov was sentenced to 18 years in prison, with confiscation of property and a lifelong ban on holding positions in the civil service. An appeal was filed against the verdict. In June 2023, the capital's court commuted the sentence, but only concerning the prisoner's detention conditions.

In November 2023, the National Security Committee informed Kazinform News Agency that a pre-trial investigation was still ongoing against Karim Massimov for criminal offenses under Articles 218 “Legalization, laundering of money and other property obtained by criminal means” and 366 “Receiving a bribe in a particularly large-scale case” of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan. Convict Massimov remained in the pre-trial detention center of the National Security Committee in Astana to facilitate further investigative actions within the framework of the criminal case.