A millionaire Kazakh exile is claiming his country’s secret service has established a “network” in Malta with a mission to “kidnap or kill” him.
Rakhat Aliyev told The Sunday Times of Malta he has reliable information that he could be hunted down in the coming days.
“My life is in danger. There’s a spying network in Malta and this is dangerous for me and my family.
“I want to prevent any criminal acts in Malta. It could be dangerous for the Maltese and the national security of Malta,” Mr Aliyev said in a rare interview.
Mr Aliyev, once a son-in-law to Kazakhstan’s President, is one of that country’s most wanted men.
In 2007, he was sentenced in absentia to 40 years’ imprisonment for a number of crimes.
He vehemently denies all charges and insists it is the Kazakh dictatorship’s method of eliminating dissidents, especially after he decided to contest his then father-in-law for the presidency.
The threat claim follows the furore in Italy over the hasty deportation of a Kazakh dissident’s family, which the Italian government later accepted was illegal.
There’s a spying network on the island and this is dangerous
A Maltese magistrate ruled in May that local police have no jurisdiction over the case involving Mr Aliyev, who has been resident in Malta for the past three years.
But the 50-year-old is convinced the Kazakh secret service (formerly the KGB) is out to get him following a number of failed attempts on his life when he lived in Austria, where he once served as ambassador.
Though Mr Aliyev refused to be photographed, he said he decided to speak out because it is his last resort.
Mr Aliyev alleged there were signs that the system in Malta had been infiltrated, pointing to the recent leak of a highly confidential court document to the Kazakh secret service.
In another incident, shortly after a source informed him that the Kazakh intelligence agency had obtained his Sliema address he started receiving threatening letters via DHL.
He also furnished the police with a picture of a man he claimed was following him when he attended a court case last September. The man fled when Mr Aliyev attempted to take his picture.
I know I stand against a dictator and a regime. I want to open Kazakhstan, to make it free
Pacing up and down nervously at a St Julian’s location, puffing on a cigarette, Mr Aliyev said: “My informant from Kazakhstan told me I’m in danger. Kazakh KGB established a network in Malta to find me, kidnap me illegally. Or kill me. They know all my addresses,” he said, displaying documentation he claims was leaked to him.
Mr Aliyev said he was particularly worried about the safety of his wife and two children and any Maltese citizens who could be around him if he is targeted.
He said Maltese police are aware of the threat but he was not seeking their protection knowing they have limited resources.
Instead he is resorting to his “personal wealth” for protection.
He does not believe that choosing to take up residence in Malta, one of the smallest countries in Europe, potentially makes him an easier target.
He said the Kazakh president’s rich resources meant he could be tracked down anywhere.
He insisted that the conviction by the Kazakh government for his involvement in the murder of two bankers was fabricated and nothing more than a political witch-hunt.
“It’s the price for our freedom. I know I stand against a dictator and a regime. I want to open Kazakhstan, to make it free for 16 million people.
“Nazarbayev closed all the opposition media. There’s only state propaganda. They put all opposition leaders into prison.”
hgrech@timesofmalta.com
mmicallef@timesofmalta.com