UNODC presents measures to improve the effectiveness of the national system of financial investigations for stolen asset recovery in Kyrgyzstan

13 December 2022, Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

The UNODC - United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in cooperation with the Prosecutor General's Office and the State Financial Intelligence Service under the Ministry of Finance of the Kyrgyz Republic, conducted a roundtable discussion on support provided to the Kyrgyz Government in search, identification, confiscation, and recovery of stolen assets emanating from corruption activities.

 

“Recovery of stolen assets is a very complex and time-consuming process. However, we are taking all necessary measures in order to recover more of the stolen assets back to our country”, said Mr. Kumarbek Toktokunov, Deputy Prosecutor General of the Kyrgyz Republic.

 

The event was organized as part of the UNODC’s project "Support to the Kyrgyz Republic in the field of identification, confiscation and recovering the illicitly-acquired assets emanating from corruption activities" and implemented with financial support from the U.S. State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).

 

“The State Financial Intelligence Service (SFIS) is a designated authority, which contributes to the high quality of financial investigations in the field of recovery of stolen assets,” highlighted Mr. Chyngyz Kenenbayev, Head of the Administrative Division of the State Financial Intelligence Service under the Ministry of Finance of the Kyrgyz Republic.

 

The roundtable gathered some 30 senior law enforcement and supervisory authorities of the Kyrgyz Republic.

During the discussion the Head of UNODC Programme Office in the Kyrgyz Republic Mr. Andrey Seleznev underlined that within the framework of the UNODC Project launched in April 2022 and with aim to develop the Interagency Action Plan, as well as to implement the activities envisaged therein, the law enforcement and supervisory authorities of the Kyrgyz Republic took active participation in UNODC working meetings and roundtables with responsible experts of the Project and presented in details the country experience and practices in search and recovery of stolen assets.

 

UNODC presented developed measures to effectively implement international standards. They were designed  in close cooperation with national and international experts in line with best practices in the field of search and recovery of stolen assets.

"These measures cover various stages of financial investigation process and are aimed at the identification, seizure, confiscation, and recovery of stolen assets emanating from corruption activities and other serious crimes," said Mr. Igoris Krzeckovskis, UNODC International expert.

 

The round table participants noted that all the submitted legal documents are already at the final stage of approval by the responsible agencies of the Kyrgyz Republic and would be implemented in the work of the competent state institutions. Not only seizure and confiscation of stolen assets with the aim to compensate for the damage caused to the state, but also effective counteraction against corruption, misappropriation of public funds, and money laundering would be the key results in the daily activities of law enforcement agencies.

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For more information, contact Vasilina Brazhko (Ms.)

Communication and PR Specialist at

UNODC Criminal Justice &PVE Programmes

in Central Asia

UNODC PO in the Kyrgyz Republic

+996775987817 WhatsApp or

e-mail: vasilina.brazhko [at] un.org