The Petropavlovsk City Court terminated criminal proceedings against a deceased resident of the region, citing gross procedural violations by the investigating authorities.
WHAT HAPPENED IN COURT
According to the Telegram channel «HALYQSTAN», the court concluded proceedings in the case of 36-year-old Alexander Bryzgalin, a native of the North Kazakhstan Region (NKR). He was accused under Article 172 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan ("Participation in foreign armed conflicts"). According to the investigation, it involved participation in hostilities on the territory of Ukraine.
During the proceedings, it emerged that the accused had died long before the case was brought to court. The fact of death was officially registered by the Civil Registry Office of the Omsk Region on 12 November 2024. However, the case only reached the court at the end of December of that year.
Under the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the death of a suspect is an unconditional ground for terminating criminal prosecution, except in cases where rehabilitation is required. The case file does not specify whether the issue of rehabilitation was considered.
WHAT VIOLATIONS THE COURT IDENTIFIED
Judge Yelena Aushakimova, terminating the proceedings on the grounds of paragraph 11 of part 1 of Article 35 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan ("Termination of a criminal case due to the death of a suspect"), issued a special ruling.
The document notes that sending the case to court concerning a deceased person contradicts the requirements of the law. The court stated that criminal prosecution should have been terminated at the stage of the pre-trial investigation.
Materials regarding the identified violations have been sent to the Department of the National Security Committee (KNB) for the NKR for appropriate action.
POSITION OF THE RELATIVES
The mother of the deceased stated that during the investigation stage, her right to petition for the termination of the case due to her son's death was not explained to her. The court took these circumstances into account when considering the case.