Rysbek became politically active after his younger brother, Tynychbek Akmatbaev, died in a October 2005 prison riot. Tynychbek, a member of parliament, headed the parliamentary committee on organized crime. In the days following Tynychbek’s assassination, Rysbek collected crowds in central Bishkek to demand the resignation of Kyrgyz prime minister Felix Kulov down. He accused Kulov of responsibility in Tynychbek’s death and of being allied with imprisoned mafia boss and Akmatbaev brothers’ long-time foe Aziz Batukaev, an ethnic Chechen.

Rysbek survived two assassination attempts in 1996 and 2000, reportedly instigated by Batukaev. He had the reputation of being a devoted Muslim. Rysbek’s supporters held public prayers during protests against Kulov. Some Kyrgyz experts claim that Rysbek informally backed Kyrgyz president Kurmanbek Bakiev and his son Maksim Bakiev.

During the reign of Askar Akayev, Rysbek was escaping government prosecution in Kazakhstan, Russia and West European states. After the March 24, 2005, Tulip Revolution, Rysbek and his six crime accomplices were acquitted of all charges, including triple homicide. However, a few weeks after the trial, three members of Rysbek’s gang were assassinated.

On April 10, Rysbek won a parliamentary seat through by-elections with almost 80 percent support in his hometown of Balykchi. As a part of his political campaign, Rysbek promised to force all parliament and government members with large businesses to pay taxes. Apparently, Rysbek possessed controversial information and incriminating evidence against some political leaders.

However, the Central Election Commission (CEC) delayed registering Rysbek’s victory. The Kyrgyz political elite seemed to have divided into two groups – those in support of Rysbek’s legitimate victory and those against. However, Rysbek hired a team of prominent lawyers to contest hurdles set by the CEC. In contrast to government officials, Kyrgyz civil society mobilized in an unprecedented peaceful demonstration to oppose the merger of the political and criminal worlds. On April 29, about 15,000 people marched in central Bishkek to protest the penetration of criminal figures into the state and to remind President Bakiev of the widespread corruption across state structures.

According to Rysbek, he was the “uncrowned” thief in law in Kyrgyzstan. Rysbek clearly had both friends and foes within the Kyrgyz government and parliament. His cooperative and conflicting relations with some lawmakers and state officials provoked latent disagreements between various political forces. Moreover, expressed support or condemnation against Rysbek’s participation in the Kyrgyz politics revealed informal coalitions between state officials and organized criminal groups.

A number of controversial versions regarding Rysbek’s possible assassins are being discussed in the Kyrgyz mass media. The Kyrgyz president and prime minister are among the suspected. Rysbek’s impunity gained after the March 24 revolution considerably undermined Bakiev’s public approval rating. At the same time, it was clear that Rysbek openly threatened Kulov by declaring a jihad against him. Furthermore, some Kyrgyz analysts assume that law-enforcement agencies were interested in removing the controversial criminal because of his increased political power. The official version of the Kyrgyz Ministry of Interior, however, asserts that Rysbek died as a result of a violent showdown between competing criminal gangs.

There are also some suspicions that Rysbek is still alive and he simply staged his own assassination to leave the political scene and escape public attention. It was considered suspicious that only a week after Rysbek’s death, his family members came to meet with president Bakiev despite the fact that the seven-day death commemoration is an important event in Kyrgyz traditions. Moreover, although official sources from law enforcement confirmed Rysbek’s death, no medical expertise was consulted nor was the body seen.

By all means, Rysbek’s death shook Kyrgyz political circles. Against the background of the recent armed clash at the Tajik-Kyrgyz border between Kyrgyz border guards and a militant group on May 12, when six civilians and soldiers died, Bakiev’s meeting with the family of a slain criminal generated popular criticism.

Rysbek’s death signals that showdowns between state officials and illegal non-state actors are ongoing and turning increasingly violent in Kyrgyzstan. The removal of the mafia boss will likely propel his numerous supporters to act more aggressively against rival political forces.