Alnur Aljapparuly Mussayev (Kazakh: Әлнұр Әлжаппарұлы Мұсаев, Älnūr Äljapparūly Mūsaev; born 4 January 1954; Lugovoye, Lugovsky District, Dzhambul Region, Soviet Union) was the former head of Kazakhstan's National Security Committee (KNB) under the tenure of President Nursultan Nazarbayev. He served from May 1997 to September 1998, then returned for a second term from August 1999 to May 2001 after his predecessor Nurtai Abykayev was sacked in a scandal over the sale of old MiG fighter planes to North Korea.[1][2]
Alnur Mussayev | |
|---|---|
Әлнұр Мұсаев | |
 | |
| Chairman of the National Security Committee | |
| In office 12 May 1997 – 1 September 1998 | |
| President | Nursultan Nazarbayev |
| Preceded by | Djanisbek Djumanbekov |
| Succeeded by | Nurtai Abykayev |
| In office 9 August 1999 – 5 May 2001 | |
| President | Nursultan Nazarbayev |
| Preceded by | Nurtai Abykayev |
| Succeeded by | Marat Tazhin |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 4 January 1954 Lugovoe, Kazakh SSR, Soviet Union |
| Nationality | Kazakh |
| Political party | QKP (until 1991) |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | Satbayev University Institute of National Security of the Republic of Belarus |
In 2007, Mussayev fled Kazakhstan along with his former deputy Rakhat Aliyev to Vienna, Austria.[3] Mussayev accused the government of widespread corruption and payments of millions of dollars in bribes by western oil companies to President Nazarbayev.[3] The government of Kazakhstan has convicted him of crimes in absentia as a result of his defection.[4]
An attempted kidnapping of Mussayev took place in Vienna in September 2008. The Austrian government declined comment on the perpetrators' origins at the time.[3] In a January 2010 trial, defendant Ildar A., one of three men charged with the kidnap attempt on Mussayev, was found not guilty by an Austrian court. Mussayev described the verdict as "politically motivated" and an "attempt to please Kazakhstan". During the trial, Mussayev claimed not to know Ildar A., but he admitted in press comments soon after that this was not entirely accurate, as he knew the defendant professionally but not personally; he explained the discrepancy by claiming that his oath to Kazakhstan prevented him from revealing this information.[5]
In 2015, Mussayev faced charges for the abduction and murder of two bankers in the Nurbank murder case.[6] The primary suspect in the case, Rakhat Aliyev, was found hanged in his prison cell before the trial began. The trial was one of the most complex in Austrian history with over 60 witnesses.[7] Mussayev was cleared of all charges.
References edit
- ^ "Kazakh sackings over plane scandal", BBC News, 1999-08-09, retrieved 2009-08-01
- ^ Кузнецов, Николай (2009-12-11), "Девять жизней Комитета нацбезопасности", Взгляд, vol. 45, no. 134, archived from the original on 2012-02-27, retrieved 2010-01-28
- ^ a b c Austria Investigates Bid to Kidnap Kazakh Exile by Susan Schmidt and David Crawford, The Wall Street Journal, retrieved September 25, 2008
- ^ Ambitions blinding common sense Archived 2011-01-27 at the Wayback Machine, National Security Committee of The Republic of Kazakhstan, retrieved September 25, 2008
- ^ Ex-KNB Head Says Austrian Court Made Politically Motivated Verdict
- ^ "Kazakh pair in Austria murder trial". BBC News. 2015-04-14. Retrieved 2020-02-27.
- ^ Dell, Johannes (2015-07-10). "Epic murder trial tests Austrian justice". BBC News. Retrieved 2020-02-29.