Ukrainian Arms Dealers Sentenced In Kazakhstan To be Transferred Home

Two Ukrainian arm dealers sentenced for bribery in Kazakhstan will serve their six-year prison terms in their homeland.

The Ukrainian Justice Ministry said on December 4 that an agreement had been reached with Kazakh authorities, in which top officials of a Ukrainian state company, Ukrspetseskport, would be transferred to Ukraine soon.

Oleksandr Shkolyarenko and Oleksandr Khrulyov were arrested in January in Kazakhstan and charged with paying a $200,000 bribe to the chief of the Kazakh Defense Ministry's Directorate for Arms, Major General Almaz Asenov, to expedite deals related to military aircraft.

Asenov was arrested, as well.

In July, Asenov was sentenced to 11 years in jail; the two Ukrainians each received six years.

A court in Almaty upheld the sentences in September.


Based on reporting by delo.ua, "Komsomolskaya Pravda," and Interfax