Update by Law Enforcement on Investigation into Kazakhstan’s Tragic January: More Than 5,000 Pre-trial Investigations Registered
Nur-Sultan, 18 July 2022 – Yeldos Kilymzhanov, Deputy Head of the First Service of the Prosecutor General's Office of Kazakhstan, and Mukhtar Kozhaev, Deputy Head of the Investigative Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Kazakhstan, provided another update on the investigation into the tragic events in early January in Kazakhstan.
Yeldos Kilymzhanov informed that more than 5,000 pre-trial investigations have been registered across the country as a result of the work of the law enforcement. He added that to date, more than 30,000 investigative actions have been carried out in 8 regions of the country.
The representative of the Prosecutor General's Office also stated that there are 53 criminal cases on riots and 32 on acts of terrorism in the proceedings of the special prosecutors. There are currently 349 suspects in custody. Kilymzhanov further announced that in total, 429 criminal cases have been sent to court, in which 545 persons have been convicted. He added that real terms of imprisonment have been given to 83 defendants who committed serious crimes related to inflicting violence on government officials, and destruction of property.
Fellow speaker Mukhtar Kozhaev informed that as of today, 381 criminal cases are under investigation by the internal affairs bodies, in which 10 persons are in custody.
The representative of the Ministry of Internal Affairs also announced that 359 cases against 589 suspects have been sent to court with an indictment. Most of them are involved in theft during riots, illegal possession of weapons, theft of weapons, theft of vehicles, robberies and hooliganism. He also noted that 55 criminal cases against 116 defendants remain pending before the courts.
Kozhaev stated that stolen property of citizens and businesses, estimated at more than 343 million tenge ($705,294), has been returned
The speakers once again emphasized that the prosecutor's office ensures the observance of the rights of those involved in the investigative process in all criminal cases.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs representative also announced that to date, 1,729 weapons have been found and seized by the police. At the same time, criminals are still in possession of more than 2,000 stolen weapons.