The family of the deceased Nuray Serikbai filed a motion in court to recover compensation for material and moral damages from the defendant totaling more than 10 billion tenge. Material damages were assessed at 14,739,065 tenge, and moral damages at 10 billion tenge.
WHAT CLAIMS THE VICTIM'S SIDE HAS MADE
The family's lawyer Ayanhan Omarov said that the material damages include funeral expenses, the performance of Islamic rites, memorial events, the construction of the grave, legal assistance, as well as participation in the court proceedings.
In addition, the victim's side is asking the court to recover compensation for moral damages from the defendant in the amount of 10 billion tenge. According to the lawyer, the family believes that no sum of money can compensate for their loss, but they have exercised their right under the law to file a civil claim.
WHAT HAPPENED AT THE COURT HEARING
During the hearing, those involved in the proceedings were shown materials related to the circumstances of the case. The forensic medical examiner Zhanbolat Pernebekov reported that 35 injuries were recorded on the body of the deceased, which, in his words, were inflicted while she was alive.
The court also examined the initial testimony of the defendant Sherkhan Aymakhan, given during the investigation. He stated that he remembered inflicting several knife blows but did not remember all the circumstances of what happened. Later, when asked by the court about the victim's blood on the knife, the defendant said he admitted to the killing "in a state of affect".
WHAT OTHER MATERIALS THE COURT EXAMINED
Judge Samiddin Temiraliev also read out the results of the examination of the video recording made after the alleged abduction of Nuray Serikbai. According to the conclusion, the girl's speech showed signs of a pre-prepared text. In particular, the experts noted the sequential presentation, complex syntactic constructions characteristic of written speech, and the absence of independent initiative in expressing her thoughts.
Furthermore, the examination called into question the voluntariness of the girl's words about having no complaints. The final assessment of this evidence will be made by the court.
HOW THE DEFENDANT RESPONDED
After the civil claim was read out, the judge asked the defendant whether he acknowledged the stated claims. Sherkhan Aymakhan answered in the negative.
In addition, during the proceedings, a transcript of a telephone conversation between the defendant and his father, which took place on 12 March 2026, was read out. According to the transcript read by the court, the father reproached his son for what had happened, and the defendant himself repeatedly replied that he did not remember anything and could hardly hear the person he was speaking to.
CONTEXT
The tragedy occurred on 11 January 2026 in Shymkent. Nuray Serikbai received fatal knife wounds on the street from a man who had been pursuing her. The suspect — a 28-year-old man — was detained two days later and placed in a pre-trial detention centre.
The situation caused a public outcry. On 20 January 2026, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev ordered an assessment of the actions of the Shymkent police. Subsequently, personnel decisions were made.
Later, the case was reclassified under the article "Murder committed with particular cruelty". The penalty provides for 15 to 20 years in prison or life imprisonment.
Earlier, the accused Sherkhan Aymakhan did not admit guilt, gave his own version of what happened, and asked for forgiveness from the relatives of the deceased and the residents of Kazakhstan for his mental state.
