A court in the Karaganda Region has sentenced a couple from the Karkaraly District and their daughter for the cruel treatment of six foster children. The convicted individuals were taken into custody in the courtroom.
WHAT THE INVESTIGATION ESTABLISHED
From 2018 to 2023, the family members systematically abused six foster children. According to the case files, the head of the family spent government benefits allocated for the orphans' maintenance on online casinos. The total amount of damage exceeded 6 million tenge.
The investigation also established that the children were punished for minor offences, had their food restricted, were forced to perform heavy physical labour, and were subjected to other forms of cruel treatment.
WHAT INJURIES THE CHILDREN SUSTAINED
Doctors recorded 47 scars on one of the boys and 19 on another. One of the victims became disabled and underwent several operations on his head.
The child lost consciousness after the foster parents wrapped him in a carpet and jumped on it.
WHAT DECISION THE COURT MADE
The court sentenced the head of the family to 12 years in prison, his wife to 10 years, and their daughter to 4 years and 8 months.
In addition, the court ordered the convicted individuals to repay over 6 million tenge to the state. Each of the six injured children was awarded compensation for moral damages in the amount of 10 million tenge.
The convicted individuals were taken into custody immediately after the verdict was announced.
The verdict has not yet entered into legal force.
CONTEXT
The cruel treatment of the children came to light in 2025.
The six children had lived with the family since 2018, but the criminal case was only opened in 2023.
The defendants did not admit their guilt, and their defence insisted that the victims were exaggerating what had happened. After a visit from the grandmother, three of the children were removed from the family, and the remaining wards were returned to the orphanage.