The State Committee for National Security detained the CEO of the Dolpran gold deposit

The State Committee for National Security of Kyrgyzstan reported the arrest of the CEO of the Dolpran gold mine, located in the Kemin district of the Chui region. The top manager of the company, a citizen of the People's Republic of China, is suspected of causing damage on a particularly large scale and of systematic violations of environmental and mining legislation.

According to the State Committee, during the course of the investigation, numerous violations were identified in the activities of Kemin Resource Group LLC, which operates at the deposit.

A commission inspection conducted by specialists from the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Forest Service of the Ministry of Emergency Situations revealed serious violations in the conduct of geological exploration work. In particular, the following was established:

• destruction of the earth's surface over an area of 14,398.6 m²;
• non-compliance of the work performed with the approved technical project;
• damage to land and failure to comply with the terms of the licence agreement;
• provision of inaccurate data to the reserves commission;
• violations of the requirements of the Kyrgyz Republic's Law ‘On Subsoil’;
• numerous violations of the Law ‘On Industrial Safety of Hazardous Production Facilities’ and the rules for the safe conduct of open-pit mining operations.

An environmental assessment found that the damage to the environment was classified as particularly large-scale.

Following the investigation, the CEO of Kemin Resource Group was detained on 20 November. The October District Court of Bishkek issued a ruling to place him in the SIZO SCNS detention centre.