In Kazakhstan, police officers, convicted of torture, were acquitted

Four police officers from Aktobe, convicted in September for torturing a detainee for lengthy prison sentences, were fully acquitted.

Recall, as ACCA reported, on September 9, the trial was held in Aktobe in the case of the deputy head of the police department No.4 of Almaty region of Aktobe, Ruslan Esanov, and three detectives: captain Marat Temirgaliev, senior lieutenant Dastan Khodzhibaev and lieutenant Asylbek Talasbaev.

All four were accused of torturing detainee R. Kulmukhambetov for more than three hours, wresting an admission of theft. As a result of torture, according to the conclusion of forensic experts, bruises were found on the body of Kulmukhambetov. In addition, he had 6 broken ribs.

The court found the police officers guilty evidence sufficient and sentenced Ruslan Esanov to five years in a penal colony with deprivation of the right to hold law enforcement posts for three years. A similar punishment was received by Marat Temirgaliev. Asylbek Talasbaev and Dastan Khodzhibaev received four years in prison with a sentence of the court and served their sentences in the colony. They were also forbidden to hold law enforcement posts for three years. The court also decided to recover moral damage from the defendants in favor of Kulmukhambetov in the amount of 1300 US dollars.

However, the sentenced police officers did not agree and filed an appeal.

On October 28, the board of appeals of the Aktobe regional court fully acquitted the convicted four. As noted at the court, the examinations did not confirm Kulmukhambetov’s testimony that he was beaten and tortured. In addition, the trial court did not take into account that the testimonies of witnesses were testimonies of persons interested in the case and, moreover, they were not eyewitnesses to torture, and in their testimonies relied only on the words of the victim.

The appellate court also granted acquitted police officers the right to rehabilitation and redress.