The court investigation into the case of the former head of the Ministry of Health Elzhan Birtanov and his deputy Olzhas Abishev has been completed and they have given their final speech, the national portal "Adyrna" reports with reference to Kazinform.
This process took place online on the "Zoom" platform. The ex-vice minister of health Olzhas Abishev, who was the first to speak there, claimed that the charges against him were incoherent and asked for a full acquittal.
"Dear court and participants of this process! As I've said before, I don't feel guilty. My parents always taught me to obey the law. It was my family's main source of education.
During the investigation, I was able to answer all questions accurately and clearly. The charges against me are fictitious, unsubstantiated and a figment of the imagination of the Financial Monitoring Agency. Our prosecutors are also blind and deaf when it comes to the truth. The prosecution has no knowledge of IT technologies. The prosecutor's office does not even know how the electronic platform works.
I will go to the end to prove that I am not guilty and ask for a full acquittal," said Olzhas Abishev.
Elzhan Birtanov, the ex-head of the Ministry of Health, who delivered the closing speech, noted that he had presented clear evidence of his innocence at previous court hearings.
"Although the court investigation took place in a complex and stressful situation, we are reaching the final stage of this case. Until now, we have presented all the evidence, heard the witnesses, and heard the indictment. As a result, we saw that the state prosecutor's office could not prove the guilt against me and Olzhas Abishev. I believe that our only crime is our desire to be good public servants.
It is clear that there is an electronic platform, where the money was spent. How the situation developed is clear to everyone. The same is true for medical aviation. I think I have given enough evidence and in this case I did not seek any personal gain.
Honorable court, I hope that in the consultation room you will distinguish all the evidence presented by our side, objectively evaluate the illegal evidence presented by the public prosecutor, and recognize me and Olzhas Abishev as innocent. We are not criminals, we have not broken the law," Elzhan Birtanov concluded.
According to the judge, the time of the verdict is set in advance, and 8 people are invited to it by the accused and the prosecuting authority. This process will take place offline.
Let's remind that the former Minister of Health Elzhan Birtanov was arrested on November 3, 2020 on suspicion of wasting budget funds.
According to the investigation material, Elzhan Birtanov and his deputy Olzhas Abishev were accused of causing 1.5 billion tenge losses to the state through "abuse of official authority" while using the services of Ericsson Nicola Tesla.
