Zhambyl Region, 15 October. The Kordai District Court in Zhambyl Region has ordered Russian rapper Navai (Navai Bakirov) held in custody for two months, until 14 December 2026. He was detained on suspicion of drug smuggling.
According to the Zhambyl Region police department, the rapper was detained on 13 October at the Kordai border checkpoint on entering Kazakhstan from Kyrgyzstan: during a check of the car he was travelling in, a drug substance was found and seized. The investigation is being conducted under two articles of the Criminal Code relating to smuggling and illegal possession of narcotics. The suspect was first placed in a temporary detention facility.
Lawyer Rena Kerimova said the defence intends to appeal the arrest and seek a change of the preventive measure, including release on bail. According to her, she did not make it to the hearing. Navai's concert in Astana scheduled for 14 October was postponed indefinitely by the organisers, who cited technical reasons. Kyrgyzstan's border service has opened an internal inquiry into how the artist passed control at the Ak-Zhol checkpoint.
Navai Bakirov, known as a member of the duo HammAli & Navai, is a Russian rapper of Azerbaijani origin. He is currently a suspect in the case; his guilt has not been proven and there is no court verdict.
