Trial of Former PM Begins in KazakhstanKazakhstan's Supreme Court Wednesday began the trial of the corruption case of country's former Prime Minister Akezhan Kazhegeldin by default, Xinhua reported.Kazhegeldin, who was the Kazakh prime minister between 1994 and 1997, was charged with bribery, tax evasion, abuse of power, and illegal collection and transfer of weapons. Kazakhstan prosecutors started investigation into the corruption allegations against him in 1998 and he fled the country subsequently. His whereabouts are not known although he was arrested in Russia in 1999, and in Italy in 2000. Prosecutors for several times asked him to surrender and face trial, but he failed to turn up. |
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