Office of family of Yerzhan Tatishev fight for justice: Convicted assassin could be released early in Kazakhstan

ASTANA, Kazakhstan, Sept. 11, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Konayev City Court, in southeast Kazakhstan, will decide on Thursday 12 September whether to release convicted assassin Muratkhan Tokmadi from prison just six years into his 10.5-year sentence for the murder of prominent Kazakh businessman Yerzhan Tatishev, former Chairman and CEO of Bank Turan Alem ('BTA').

Tokmadi was not released on 10 August as was previously speculated, following protests to the court for justice. A host of voices, including Tatishev's family, former colleagues and former United States FBI Director Louis J. Freeh who has investigated the case, say that it is scandalously early to allow Tokmadi to walk free.

Tokmadi killed Yerzhan Tatishev in 2004, but it took 14 years to prove that Tatishev was deliberately murdered, with the court finally convicting Tokmadi in 2018. By claiming that the fatal shotgun blast he fired during a hunting trip had been accidental, Tokmadi initially received a short sentence for manslaughter, avoiding prison. However, further investigation showed that Tokmadi had in fact deliberately murdered Tatishev, supposedly acting on the orders of now-disgraced businessman and former politician, Mukhtar Ablyazov.

Tokmadi gave a television interview in 2017 in which he admitted his complicity in the crime, and his role in subverting justice through paying bribes to make the shooting appear an accident.

Following Tatishev's death, Ablyazov took over the control of BTA, at the time the largest private bank in Kazakhstan. Under Ablyazov's control, BTA was defrauded of over $6 billion and entered bankruptcy restructuring. Ablyazov then fled Kazakhstan and continues to face charges.

Louis J. Freeh, Former Director of the FBI, and an investigator acting on behalf of the Tatishev family, stated:

"Muratkhan Tokmadi is a convicted killer and assassin, serving a partial sentence of only six years in prison is contrary to the moral values of Kazakhstan and contrary to natural justice and the rule of law. Early release of criminals from prison is designed to help with their rehabilitation into society, preventing recidivism and so protecting the communities into which they are released.

"Tokmadi now admits no guilt, expresses no remorse, and has no respect for the law. This is not an inmate who should be released from prison early. Instead, because of the extremely serious nature of his crime, Tokmadi should serve his full 10.5-year sentence. He should also be required to testify against Ablyazov and the other conspirators who planned this heinous murder and BTA takeover."