The Prosecutor General's Office of Kyrgyzstan has stopped investigating a criminal case related to the Kumtor gold mine against the country's first president, Askar Akaev, TASS reports citing the press service of the Prosecutor General's Office of Kyrgyzstan. This means that all criminal charges against Akaev have been dropped.
"The case against Akaev at Kumtor has been closed," a spokesman for the press service said. Earlier, in relation to the first head of the Kyrgyz state, the investigation of cases on other episodes was stopped.
Akaev was elected head of the Kyrgyz SSR in October 1990. In August 1991, he became the first president of independent Kyrgyzstan, which he headed until 2005.
Akaev lost power as a result of the so-called Tulip Revolution in the country in 2005. For security reasons, he left Kyrgyzstan with his family and resigned as head of state. Since then, the first Kyrgyz president has been living and engaged in scientific and teaching activities in Moscow.
Last year and the year before last, Akayev came to his homeland to testify in the Kumtor case. This deposit is located in the north-eastern part of Kyrgyzstan, it produces about 15 tons of gold annually. Previously, it was developed by the Canadian company Centerra. In 2021, the current leadership of Kyrgyzstan nationalized the field after a lengthy litigation with Centerra.
In April 2005, several criminal cases were initiated against Akaev and his family members, including under a corruption article. Currently, all of them are suspended or discontinued.
CentralasianLIGHT.org
January 13, 2023