“Billions Vanish in Kazakh Banking Scandal”, “US cold drives escaped convict Robert Vick back to his cell”, “Wanted by 4 countries, ex-banker faces extradition”, “Amateur singer in Kazakhsan Voice final”, “Fines for 'extremist' books in Kazakhstan”

online.wsj.com. “Billions Vanish in Kazakh Banking Scandal” - Kazakhstan's BTA Bank Accuses Former Chairman of Fraud. A Ukrainian lawyer named Olena Tyshchenko traveled to the Royal Courts of Justice on the afternoon of July 22 as a bit player in one of the most complex legal dramas ever seen here. When she left the imposing edifice, though, she unwittingly walked into a starring role. Kazakhstan's state-owned BTA Bank had sued its former chairman, Mukhtar Ablyazov, accusing him of embezzlement and fraud on a monumental scale. It had won billions of dollars in damages.

ap.com. “Wanted by 4 countries, ex-banker faces extradition” - He is wanted in his native Kazakhstan, Ukraine and Russia. He was ordered jailed in Britain. An opposition leader from a country that has been ruled by the same man since 1989, a former banker accused of siphoning off billions, Mukhtar Ablyazov has been jailed since police special forces seized him July 31 in the south of France. On Thursday, a judge is expected to rule on his extradition.

independent.co.uk. “US cold drives escaped convict Robert Vick back to his cell”- The freezing temperatures in the United States have caused an escaped inmate to turn himself back in. 42-year-old Robert Vick of Hartford escaped the minimum security Blackburn Correctional Complex in Lexington, Kentucky, on Sunday.

tengrinews.kz. “Amateur singer in Kazakhsan Voice final” - The finale of the first edition of Kazakhstan's The Voice will take place at 9:35 p.m. Astana time on January 12 in Kazakhstan TV channel studio. The audience will use SMS-voting to choose the winner from among the few lucky participants selected by the jury Nurlan Alban, Medeu Arynbayev, Almas Kishkenbayev and Madina Sadvakasova for the finals. The winner will get 5 million tenge ($32,000) and a contract with a recording company. 

“Figure skating: Young figure skater from Kazakhstan wins tournament in Slovakia”- 13-y.o. Elizabet Tursynbayeva from Kazakhstan has won the New Year's Cup 2014 international figure skating tournament in Bratislava, Slovakia,tengrinews reports citing Kyzylorda-news.kz. 

forum18.org. “Fines for 'extremist' books in Kazakhstan” - Two Protestants in Kazakhstan's capital Astana were fined nearly four weeks' average wages in December 2013 for possessing Christian texts which the court found to be "extremist".