The editor-in-chief of the KazTAG media agency, Amir Kasenov, has been placed under house arrest.
According to the publication, lawyer Daulet Zhumagulov reported that the investigating judge refused the pre-trial investigation body's request to keep Kasenov in custody.
"Amir Kasenov will remain under house arrest during the investigation. Our work continues," the lawyer stated.
It is noted that five voluntary lawyers participated in the court hearing.
Against the backdrop of the detention and criminal prosecution of the KazTAG editor-in-chief, the situation was commented on by deputies of the Mazhilis of the Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan.
Mazhilis member Azat Peruashev stated that deputies are monitoring the situation, noting that relevant statements had already been made by both the Minister of Culture and Information, Aida Balayeva, and public organisations.
He believes it is necessary to decriminalise the article under which journalists can be held criminally liable for lies and slander.
"This is, in principle, in my opinion, a civil law matter, and it could be resolved in a more normal, calm manner," Peruashev said.
Deputy Yermurat Bapi noted that he is not familiar with all the case materials but expressed the opinion that the KazTAG publication had not overstepped the bounds of what is permissible.
"I think some individuals have an interest here. The same Turlov, most likely. Therefore, until the investigation results are in, I cannot comment specifically," Bapi added.
Commenting on the situation, Deputy Yerlan Sairov expressed hope that justice would be restored and suggested the possibility of an abuse of power by law enforcement agencies.
"He is a journalist. Journalists should have the right to express their point of view and engage in their professional activities," he stressed.
Mazhilis member Sergei Ponomarev said he intends to study the situation in detail together with lawyers and, if necessary, initiate changes to the legislation.
"We may introduce an amendment to decriminalise this article, because it is very important, and as a journalist, I am concerned about what is happening in the journalistic community. And I am, of course, in favour of strong media outlets continuing to exist and operate. I spoke with the head of KazTAG. After what is happening, we in the Mazhilis are monitoring the situation. But the situation is developing in accordance with the law. Currently, we cannot intervene and cannot influence the investigation," Ponomarev noted.
At the same time, Deputy Pavel Kazantsev disagreed with the idea of complete decriminalisation of Article 274 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan ("Dissemination of knowingly false information"), but allowed for the possibility of discussing the issue of proportionality of sanctions.
Overall, the Mazhilis deputies stated that they continue to monitor the developing situation surrounding KazTAG.
It is worth recalling that on 18 July, following a complaint from Freedom Holding, a criminal case was opened against the management of KazTAG in connection with publications about company employees Timur Bekov and Vitali Svetovoy. According to KazTAG materials, dozens of clients suffered as a result of their actions. For its part, Freedom explained that Bekov and Svetovoy acted outside the company, and clients dealt with them directly as individuals.
Later, the FBRK editorial office obtained an internal document from Freedom Holding analysing KazTAG's publications about the company's activities. The document, prepared by the holding's lawyers, provided a detailed breakdown of 25 statements from the agency's materials that the company considers to be false. The analysis includes specific quotes and comments on each statement.
A few days ago, the agency's general director, Asset Mataev, reported that the editor-in-chief of KazTAG, Amir Kasenov, had been detained in Astana.