Former Kyrgyz Prime Minister Temir Sariev has been arrested as part of a widening investigation into alleged corruption during the development of the Kumtor gold-mine project.
The State Committee for National Security (UKMK) says Sariev was detained for 48 hours on August 3 on corruption charges ahead of a court decision on pretrial custody.
Sariev served as economy minister in the post-Soviet Central Asian republic in 2011-15 and he was prime minister in 2015-16, Kabar reported.
Kumtor has been a target of financial and environmental disagreements for years, and is currently the subject of an ongoing battle for control between the Kyrgyz state and the mine's operator, Canadian Centerra Gold.
Kyrgyz Ex-PM detained amid Kumtor mine investigation
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