Kazakh court authorizes detention of former interior minister for 2 months

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - A Kazakh court authorized the detention of former Interior Minister Erlan Turgymbaev for two months, the prosecutor general's office said on Thursday.

“On April 30, 2024, the Specialized Investigative Court of Astana authorized a preventive measure in the form of detention against ex-Minister of Internal Affairs E.Z. Turgymbaev for a period of two months,” a statement said.

Turgymbaev was detained on Monday on charges of “abuse of power and official authority,” as an investigation into the January 2022 riots continues.

In January 2022, massive protests broke out in the Central Asian country over fuel price rises, which later escalated into clashes with police, with the most violent incidents taking place in Almaty.

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev turned to the Collective Security Treaty Organization, a Russian-led military bloc, for help, and peacekeepers from Russia, Belarus, Armenia, and Tajikistan arrived to back Kazakh law enforcement in restoring order.