Erkin Mambetaliev sentenced to 9 years in high-security prison

The Issyk-Kul District Court sentenced Erkin Mambetaliev to nine years in a high-security prison after finding him guilty of participating in a criminal organization and other offenses. The sentence includes confiscation of property and a three-year ban on holding certain positions. His prison term will be calculated from August 10, 2024. The press service of the Issyk-Kul Regional Court told 24-kg.com news agency.

The verdict also includes charges for which Mambetaliev was found guilty but exempted from punishment due to the statute of limitations. The court ordered the confiscation of his property, including the previously seized Edelweiss resort in the village of Ornok, apartments, vehicles, and other property.

Erkin Mambetaliev is a former officer of the State Guard Service and was a personal bodyguard to ex-President Almazbek Atambayev in the early 2000s. In 2008, the Supreme Court sentenced him to life in prison for complicity in the murders of police colonel Chynybek Aliev, MP Jyrgalbek Surabaldiev, and others. However, he was released in 2010 following the April events under newly discovered evidence.

In the years that followed, his name was frequently mentioned in connection with notorious criminal figures Ryspek Akmatbaev and Kamchy Kolbaev. In August 2024, he was arrested on charges related to organized crime involvement. In September, the State Committee for National Security (SCNS) transferred his assets worth about $5.7 million into state ownership.