Najib’s future son-in-law a ‘conman’

A New York Post report, citing court documents, claims that Daniyar Nazarbayev allegedly conned his stepfather as well as his way into Columbia University.

PETALING JAYA: Adding to Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak’s growing list of headaches is a New York Post report today which claims that his prospective son-in-law is a conman.

The daily cited court documents which claimed that Daniyar Nazarbayev, who is engaged to Najib’s daugther Nooryana Najwa, “swindled his gloriously connected Kazakh stepfather out of a US$20 million Plaza condo and also conned his way into Columbia University.”

The court papers also stated that Daniyar – whose stepdad is the brother of Kazak President Nursultan Nazarbayev – obtained a place in the college using “fraudulent and fabricated” paperwork from a high school which he did not attend.

“When applying, Daniyar allegedly claimed he had graduated from a high school in Kazakhstan. He actually went to high school in Switzerland — and never graduated, sources said,” wrote the Post.

Daniyar, now 24, graduated from Columbia in 2010.

The Post reported that a knowledgeable source claimed that the allegations were reported to Columbia but it was unclear whether school officials had taken action.

“Daniyar’s name is still in the school’s alumni directory,” it stated, adding that a Columbia spokesman refused to comment on the matter.

‘Mother wanted for kidnaping, extortion’

Meanwhile, the Post report also stated that court documents claimed that Daniyar’s influential last name was not real.

“His actual surname is Kesikbayev. His mother, Maira, allegedly had his birth certificate changed after she married Bolat Nazarbayev in 2001. The marriage was annulled last year,” the report read.

The allegations were part of Bolat’s suit against Maira and her son in the Manhattan Supreme Court.

Bolat had accused them of taking advantage of his trust to allegedly swindle the Plaza condominium as well as two other multimillion dollar apartments on Wall Street.

Bolat claimed that he discovered that Maira had several aliases and was wanted by the Interpol and Kazakh authorities for crimes such as kidnapping and extortion.

While Moira could not be reached for comment, the Post said that Daniyar, meanwhile, was missing.

“In court filings, Bolat’s lawyers said they searched for him in five countries – including Malaysia, where he’s reportedly engaged to the prime minister’s daughter whom a source said he met at Columbia.

“Bolat had been looking to buy a New York apartment in 2008, and Maira and Daniyar got him to give them power of attorney so they could close the deal without him present.

“The suit says Daniyar was supposed to put the apartment in his stepdad’s name but added his mom’s. About eight months later, she sold it to Daniyar for $1, court papers say,” stated the report.