Dr. Karim Massimov was detained on January 5, 2022, following the meeting of the Security Council, because he refused President Tokayev’s “shoot to kill without warning” order.
In May 2023, an official of the National Security Committee additionally confirmed that Karim Massimov did not give an order for officers to abandon their posts during the protests. This has previously been used by the General Prosecutor of Kazakhstan, as grounds for the charge of “abuse of power in office” against Massimov.
The investigation against Karim Massimov is not related to the events of Bloody January. As has been previously alleged by the National Security Committee and other sources, the General Prosecutor’s office investigated the mass protests that swept the country at the beginning of 2022.
Nonetheless, the Government of Kazakhstan continues to name Massimov the “main organizer of January events.”
The General Prosecutor of Kazakhstan must act urgently to release Karim Massimov from detention and overturn his “top secret” conviction.
