Several high-profile officials have been detained in the Talas region, including the akim of the Bakai-Ata district A.B.M., who previously held a position in the Talas regional department of the Ministry of Natural Resources, and the director of the Talas forestry A.N.Dzh. This was reported by the State Committee for National Security of the Kyrgyz Republic (GKNB).
The investigation revealed that the detainees systematically violated the legislation of the Kyrgyz Republic.
According to information gathered during the investigation, from 2022 to 2023, the aforementioned individuals, acting in collusion, organized a corrupt scheme related to the illegal allocation of land plots for recreational purposes. These plots were located in the state forest zone along the main road leading to the city of Talas. The land plots were transferred to citizens, including M.N.I. (3.2 ha), K.u.Ch. (3 ha), A.G.A., who is the wife of the district akim (2 ha), and S.M.T. (1.2 ha). Recreation areas were built on these plots.
The transfer of land occurred without considering mandatory forest losses, the absence of positive conclusions from environmental expertise, as well as without state registration in the cadastral authorities and architectural bodies. As a result, the state suffered damage related to the evasion of forest losses, which amounted to over 23 million soms.
Furthermore, in 2024, akim A.B.M., using his official position and contrary to the interests of the service, issued a permit for the felling of 475 pyramid poplar trees in the Bakai-Ata district in collusion with former deputy S.I.A. and former head of the rural administration B.O.Dzh. The damage from this act amounted to 5 million 310 thousand 505 soms.
Criminal proceedings have been initiated on these facts under Article 337 of the Criminal Code of the Kyrgyz Republic, concerning abuse of official position. A.B.M. and A.N.Dzh. have been detained and placed in the temporary detention facility of the Talas city police department. Additional investigative actions are underway to identify others involved in the corrupt scheme.
