ASTANA -- A Kazakh court has sentenced the head of the Kazakh Journalists Union and his son to lengthy prison terms on corruption charges.
A court in Astana on October 3 found Seitqazy Mataev guilty of tax evasion and embezzlement, and sentenced him to six years in prison.
His son, Aset, the director of the KazTAG news agency, was sentenced to five years.
Both have denied the charges, and rights groups have said Seitqazy Mataev is being prosecuted on trumped-up charges in response to his work as head of the journalists union.
The trial has been delayed several times because of the 61-year-old's health issues.