In the court of the Ulytau region, four jurors were identified who, it is alleged, should not have taken part in the hearing of a criminal case concerning torture. Following this, the jury was disbanded, and the materials were sent to the prosecutor's office for verification.
WHAT IS KNOWN
The police officers' interests are represented by lawyer Beibit Saginbek.
According to him, the case involves employees of the Police Department (PD) of the Ulytau region. They were accused of torturing a man who, it is alleged, was brought to the Zhanaarka District Police Station on 13 August 2024 for an administrative offence.
As reported by journalist Mikhail Kozachkov on his Telegram channel «Kozachkov offside», the jury returned a not guilty verdict, after which all three defendants were acquitted.
Following the acquittal, the police officers were released from custody in the courtroom.
Later, the regional court overturned the acquittal and sent the case for a new trial with a different jury.
WHAT HAPPENED IN THE NEW TRIAL
According to the lawyer, during the new trial the judge discovered four people among the twelve jurors whose names were not on the official lists of jurors.
The lawyer alleges that questionnaires with signs of forgery were used in forming the panel. According to him, these individuals managed to be included in the main jury pool outside the legal selection procedure.
He also stated that these people were not sent notifications about their participation in the court proceedings, yet they were granted juror status and took part in hearing the case.
After this, the court disbanded the jury panel and issued a special ruling addressed to the Zhezkazgan City Police Department.
HOW THE COURT AND PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE REACTED
Following the discovery of the violations, the court disbanded the entire jury panel. Additionally, a special ruling was issued to the prosecutor's office of the Ulytau region to register a criminal case under Article 407 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Kazakhstan (CC RK) ("Obstruction of justice and pre-trial investigation proceedings").
The lawyer also stated that the actions of the alleged fake jurors may show signs of Part 3 of Article 385 of the CC RK ("Use of a knowingly forged document").
According to Mikhail Kozachkov, a criminal case was registered, but was later closed. The reasons for its closure are not given in the published materials.
WHY THE SITUATION ATTRACTED ATTENTION
The situation caused a public outcry due to the circumstances surrounding the formation of the jury. In his appeal, the lawyer stated the need for oversight from the Prosecutor General's Office and the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA).