Kazakhstan’s National Security Committee has placed Yerkin Dlimbetov, the founder and head of Ordamed, on a wanted list.

Dlimbetov, 44, was declared wanted on January 28, with the search case registered in Astana. The initiator of the search is the National Security Committee, The Caspian Post reports via Kazakh media.

Earlier, the National Security Committee said that Ordamed allegedly passed off foreign-made medical equipment as domestically produced in order to obtain state benefits when supplying hospitals. Investigators claim the company’s management forged documentation for 28 types of imported medical equipment, registering them as Kazakh-made products. This, authorities say, allowed Ordamed to receive preferential terms in supplies to state clinics, with the alleged damage estimated at 4.5 billion tenge.

Ordamed has strongly rejected the accusations, describing them as pressure from competitors and an attempt to push a major market player out of the industry. Dlimbetov has insisted that there was no falsification, that all government contracts were fulfilled, and that the supplied equipment has been delivered and is operating properly in medical facilities.

Ordamed is one of the leading suppliers of medical equipment in Kazakhstan and the CIS, making the case one of the most high-profile investigations in the country’s healthcare sector in recent years.