Ex-Las Vegan acquitted in Kazakhstan trial

WASHINGTON -- Mark Seidenfeld, a former Las Vegan who was jailed for 18 months in the former Soviet Union, was acquitted on Wednesday of an embezzlement charge in Kazakhstan.

Seidenfeld, 39, was released from custody in the city of Almaty following the verdict issued by a regional court judge. It was his first taste of freedom since his arrest at a Russian airport on Dec. 7, 2005.

Although freed, he was ordered to remain in Almaty until the ruling becomes final in 15 days, according to Derek Bloom, a Washington attorney who spoke with Seidenfeld after the verdict.

The monthlong trial of the telecommunications executive had garnered attention in the business community in Kazakhstan where international businesspeople such as Seidenfeld have flocked for opportunities in the young nation's booming oil economy. Kazakhstan is a former Soviet republic that gained independence in 1991.

U.S. officials also were watching closely as to whether Seidenfeld would be given a fair trial since his accuser was a well-connected Kazakh investor.

Seidenfeld was accused of embezzling $40,000, a charge he and advocates said was concocted.

Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., had lobbied Kazakh officials on behalf of Seidenfeld, a former constituent who lived in Las Vegas for three months in 2004.

Berkley was en route to witness the verdict but did not make it in time. The lawmaker was in Frankfort, Germany, on Wednesday, after flight delays in Chicago on Tuesday hampered her departure from the United States.

Berkley said she still planned to proceed to Kazakhstan where she was scheduled to meet with Seidenfeld and his family, and also conduct meetings on other topics with Kazakh leaders.

Her trip was paid for by the Jewish Congress of Kazakhstan.

Berkley said official attention from the United States helped ensure a fair trial.

"I believe with all my heart if we had not been intimately involved in this process that Mr. Seidenfeld's chances of acquittal would have been diminished," Berkley said from Frankfort.

Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., also lobbied on Seidenfeld's behalf. He said in a statement the case "is not over yet because he won't be allowed to return home until all of the appeals have been exhausted."

Prosecutors are expected to appeal, but the ruling by Judge Zaura Keikibasova "was very detailed," and "she has a reputation as writing opinions that can never be appealed successfully," according to Bloom's account of his conversation with Seidenfeld.

Further, the Constitutional Court of Russia ruled this week that Seidenfeld's arrest in December 2005 was unconstitutional, Bloom said, which "should further close the door on any appeal."