A group of individuals organizing illegal gold mining has been identified in the Zharma district of the Abai region, according to the Financial Monitoring Agency. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Sputnik Kazakhstan.
According to investigation data, the criminal group mined gold without the appropriate permit 10 kilometers from the village of Zhangiztobe. They extracted gold-bearing ore by open-pit method and washed it using special equipment.
During the inspection of the territory, a quarry 15 meters deep was discovered. "The volume of illegally excavated rock exceeded 12 thousand cubic meters. Also, the fertile soil layer on an area of more than 4 thousand square meters was damaged," the statement said.
During operational search activities, nine people involved in the case were identified. Equipment for washing and crushing ore, seven bags of gold-containing material, two metal detectors, two loaders, and one excavator were seized from the illegal mining site.
The investigation is ongoing.