BISHKEK -- Kyrgyz former Prime Minister Daniyar Usenov has been sentenced in absentia to 15 years in prison.
On June 10, a court in Bishkek found Usenov guilty of misappropriating public land in 2007 when he was the mayor of Bishkek.
Usenov was appointed Kyrgyz prime minister in 2009.
He fled Kyrgyzstan shortly after the violent antigovernment protests in April 2010 that led to the ouster of the country's president, Kurmanbek Bakiev.
Usenov's current whereabouts is unknown.
Bakiev, who is currently living in Belarus, is being tried in absentia in Kyrgyzstan along with Usenov and more than 20 aides and associates in connection with the deaths of nearly 100 people who were killed when security forces fired on protesters during the anti-Bakiev demonstrations.
On June 10, a court in Bishkek found Usenov guilty of misappropriating public land in 2007 when he was the mayor of Bishkek.
Usenov was appointed Kyrgyz prime minister in 2009.
He fled Kyrgyzstan shortly after the violent antigovernment protests in April 2010 that led to the ouster of the country's president, Kurmanbek Bakiev.
Usenov's current whereabouts is unknown.
Bakiev, who is currently living in Belarus, is being tried in absentia in Kyrgyzstan along with Usenov and more than 20 aides and associates in connection with the deaths of nearly 100 people who were killed when security forces fired on protesters during the anti-Bakiev demonstrations.
