After a Brutal Attack, Altynay Fights for Justice as Court Eases Her Ex-Husband’s Sentence

Three years ago, Altynay Nursoltanova, a resident of Astana, became disabled. Her life split into “before” and “after” in a single night: in front of their children, her husband struck her more than 20 times in the head and face. The young woman suffered fractures of her skull and facial bones, and her left eye was sinking into the sinus cavity. A court sentenced the domestic abuser to six years and eight months in prison.

But Altynay’s former husband managed to have his sentence transferred to a settlement colony.

Orda.kz looked into the matter.

A Terrifying Night

On the night of March 17–18, 2022, Altynay Nursoltanova went to meet a friend who had come from her hometown of Semey.

I put my sons to bed first — the older one was just over two, the younger just over a year. I left home around ten in the evening and returned shortly after midnight. A quarrel was waiting at home. My husband insulted me, and I responded. The raised voices woke the children, and they were crying, she recalls.

Then came a blow from behind with something heavy. Altynay grabbed her head; after that came kicks and many more strikes — specifically to her face and head. Altogether, her former husband delivered around 30 blows — all in front of their children, who were trembling in terror.

Then he ran off somewhere, but before leaving he called his parents. They arrived, but according to Altynay, instead of helping their daughter-in-law — at the very least calling an ambulance — they tried to cover up their son’s crime.

Using her last strength, Altynay crawled to her phone and called her mother in Semey. Her mother called an ambulance, keeping the line open to stay aware of what was happening in the apartment. This helped later reconstruct the chain of events. All this time, the boys were crying loudly. Altynay is sure it was the thought of her children that kept her from losing consciousness.

She still considers it a miracle — some sort of universal mercy — that she survived that night. Her jaw was broken, she had multiple fractures of the skull and facial bones, and her left eye was sinking into the sinus cavity.

At 29, she became disabled. Over the past three and a half years, Altynay has undergone four surgeries. The first, in Astana, repositioned her bones. The second, in Moscow, was a facial and cranial bone transplant. Metal plates were inserted in place of shattered bone fragments.

During the third surgery in Moscow my heart stopped. Then came complications: because of the severity of the trauma and because the transplants completely split apart, my eye started sinking again. I also began losing vision. In short, they told me the eye might sink again in the future. I had to go to Korea, and there they said the entire operation needed to be redone.

Imagine — they opened my skull, broke it, and assembled it again. The pain afterward was hellish; I was on tramadol for a long time,says Altynay. 

But her treatment and recovery are not over.

Another operation — the fifth — is scheduled for February 2026, again in Korea, this time on her eyes and eye muscles.

Expensive Surgeries

All the operations are paid and far from cheap. The most recent one cost about 25 million tenge, but the court only approved coverage of the operation and treatment.

They didn’t include flights or a companion. A person accompanied me and helped take care of me,says Altynay. 

By law, these costs must be reimbursed by the person whose actions caused her disability (Category III). According to her, he still owes about nine million tenge for the latest surgery.

Even the primary amount — the part the court approved — had to be fought for.

All these years we were also in court over dividing our jointly owned two-room apartment in Astana. There were many court hearings; he fought for his share. I wanted a larger share, considering the children, but that was ignored — the apartment was split 50/50. He still wasn’t satisfied, insisting it be sold at auction. He didn’t want it sold at market price and split evenly; he didn’t want us involved in the sale. In the end, the court ruled to sell the apartment through a private judicial enforcement officer at auction. The decision came in spring, the appeals court reviewed it, and it was handed over to the officer. She then gave me permission to sell it independently. A civil court also ordered him to pay for the surgery in Korea — his share of the apartment was frozen as part of the claim, explains Altynay.

After the apartment was sold, his share went toward settling the claim. How much the upcoming surgery will cost, Altynay does not yet know.

A Reduced Punishment

Throughout this time, A. repeatedly petitioned the court to replace the unserved part of his sentence with a more lenient form.

There is now a court ruling allowing him to be transferred to a settlement colony. And the judge wrote that he fully satisfied the claim, even though at the end of July this same judge, Karimova, reviewed a similar petition for leniency and rejected it. At that time, she cited unresolved debt. We provided all the documents then. She asked A. whether he regretted what he did. He said he did not. I also opposed leniency. But somehow, two months later, she issued the exact opposite decision, Altynay says in disbelief.

I am shaking with outrage. What does this mean — judges ignore the president’s directives, who every year calls for tougher penalties for violence against women? He beat her in front of two small children with a closed fist around 25 times, with a sports background in hand-to-hand combat. He did it professionally and brutally, fully understanding the consequences,  attorney Zhanna Urazbakhova wrote on social media.

The hearing took place without Altynay — even though the judge knew her firm position.

The judicial enforcement officer had also sent debt information to the institution, and the institution confirmed that A. was notified.

From 2023 to 2025 he had 18 disciplinary violations. In her July ruling denying leniency, the judge referenced these violations. But this time she ignored them. Even worse, she wrote that he settled all claims, even though this can easily be checked in the court system. I would understand if different judges were involved or circumstances had changed. But from late July to late September (the Zeren­di District Court reviewed his petition on September 25) nothing changed. Both the institution and the judge seem interested in softening his punishment, Altynay says.

The appellate panel met on November 5 without notifying the victim.

The prosecutor filed a protest against granting the petition, but the second instance upheld the lower court’s decision. Altynay feels the Zeren­di court judge did everything possible to prevent her from appealing.

After the appellate ruling, it is no longer possible.

She was supposed to upload her ruling into the Court Cabinet system. But for some reason she didn’t. I was also not notified about the hearing on A.’s petition. Yes, victims may not always be notified, but this is a crime against a person, and Kazakhstan has toughened penalties for domestic violence. This is not theft or petty fraud. A. regularly filed petitions for leniency, and I always participated with all documents. I asked to be notified, and the judge knew this. But they didn’t — as if intentionally, to keep me from appealing. Now I filed a complaint with the Supreme Court, but they forwarded it back to the regional level, she says.

After attorney Urazbakhova raised public attention, deadlines for appealing the court ruling were restored. An appeal is ahead; the date has not yet been set.

Why Is Altynay against a Settlement Colony?

The Zeren­di court is granting A.’s petitions to ease his conditions for the second time. Last year was the same, but the Aqmola regional appeals court overturned the ruling.

First, he already received the minimum sentence: the prosecutor asked for 10 years, but he got six years and eight months in a general-regime colony. He was supposed to be released only in 2028. Second, I fear for my safety and my children’s safety. Primarily mine. He hasn’t understood anything. As recently as July, A. said he did not regret what he did and would not apologize. In settlement colonies, inmates work in the city and return in the evening. Now he will ‘resolve everything’ and move freely outside Kokshetau (the settlement colony is located there). I won’t be surprised if he comes to Astana. Do you understand how unfair this is? I became disabled. I’m preparing for yet another surgery. I haven’t even recovered my health — and now I have to fear for my safety? she says in anguish.

The older boy, now six, remembers everything. After that night he developed a severe stutter. We worked with a psychologist, went through psychological and psychiatric evaluations, were treated by a neurologist, and passed through a psycho-medical-pedagogical commission. We even visited sacred sites. He was tormented by the fear: ‘Daddy will come now and beat you again.’ When I left for treatment, he cried nonstop. The psychologist said it would be extremely undesirable for him to see his father. The younger one doesn’t remember, but he had enuresis, developmental delays, and started speaking late.

Is The “Saltanat Law” Working?

The police issued protective orders against her ex-husband’s father and brother. But according to Altynay, even these measures were taken only after public pressure online.

Altynay Nursoltanova is a qualified physician. She once gave up a master’s degree in Japan under pressure from her fiancé. Nonetheless, she earned a master’s degree in public health. She works part-time — from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

A woman who suffered domestic violence, forced to spend years in court to protect herself and her children and ensure the perpetrator receives at least a minimally appropriate punishment, believes the “Saltanat Law” is not functioning in Kazakhstan.

The president talked about tightening punishment for domestic violence, but unfortunately that has not happened. Look how many women have been killed or mutilated just this year! It feels like law enforcement and the justice system simply don’t care about victims. On the contrary, in some cases, they protect the aggressors. My story is bitter proof. It is doubly paradoxical that such a decision was made by a woman. By a mother. I am convinced this didn’t happen on its own. Either she was pressured from above, or there is corruption — both in her actions and in the actions of the facility where A. served time. They clearly had their own interest. Zerendi is a small district where actions are coordinated, she says.

She filed complaints with the Supreme Court and the High Judicial Council.

Is society’s mindset changing?

I don’t think so. As long as the law isn’t tightened, as long as the courts release these tyrants early and soften already soft sentences, people like him will think they are allowed to kill and maim. And victims will feel despair, helplessness, shame, guilt, and distrust towards people and the state.

Statistics show this first of all: the number of reported domestic violence cases has tripled in the past year. Moreover, the article on battery, which was moved from the Administrative to the Criminal Code, is also working. I have already taken part in several court cases — both on domestic violence and battery. I see that people are no longer afraid; they report incidents, they know they will be protected. So the ‘Saltanat Law’ does work. But police officers, who must respond to these cases, do not always do their job, Urazbakhova emphasized.

Orda.kz will report on the appellate court’s verdict.

Original Author: Assel Turar