Appeal Court Upholds Sentence for "Dikaya Orda" Telegram Channel Author

The appeals court in Astana has reviewed the case of Daniyar Adilbekov, who ran the Telegram channel "Dikaya Orda," and oil trader Yerlan Saudegerov, according to Orda.kz.

Defense attorneys challenged what they saw as an unlawful verdict, with Adilbekov's lawyers contesting his four-and-a-half-year prison sentence for his online posts.

The case involved three alleged applying parties: Vice Minister of Energy Yerlan Akkenzhenov, journalist Gulzhan Yergaliyeva, and Astana International Airport chief Yusuf Rashed Aljavder.

All were mentioned in Adilbekov's telegram posts. 

Adilbekov faced charges of false accusation and deliberately spreading false information.

The defense team highlighted several procedural violations during the investigation and initial trial. They maintained that their client's guilt remained unproven.

I believe that the sentence was issued unlawfully and should be overturned with a new acquittal being issued in the case or with the termination of the criminal case. Since there is no evidence of a crime, said Adilzhan Mautkanov.

Attorney Adilzhan Mautkanov pointed out that Judge Asel Mukushova's verdict appeared to rely solely on the prosecution's indictment rather than all the case materials, suggesting a biased investigation.

He noted the striking similarities between the language used in the sentence and the indictment.

The court also did not issue even a special ruling on the multiple arguments of the defense about the gross violations in the investigation committed by the employees of the central offices of the National Security Committee (KNB - Ed.) and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as well as their departments in Astana. Personally, I do not understand why no one paid attention to the fact that the National Security Committee officers visited the suspect without an investigator and a lawyer. Is this acceptable in a modern secular state? Even a simple friendly conversation should only take place in the presence of a lawyer. The National Security Committee officers admitted that they did visit. There are supporting documents, he elaborated.

Mautkanov urged the court to direct the Prosecutor General, National Security Committee Chair, and Interior Minister to take firm action against the responsible officials, including potential criminal charges.

Authorities dismissed Adilbekov's complaint against KNB officers due to a lack of evidence. 

Adilbekov had alleged that KNB officers coerced him into giving false testimony.

The criminal case was terminated by the pre-trial investigation body of the Anti-Corruption Service of Astana. We appealed this decision. The Prosecutor's Office did not agree with the arguments of our complaint and left it without satisfaction. However, this termination did not substantiate the facts of Adilbekov's bodily injuries, which he also spoke about during the pre-trial investigation, Adilbekov's other lawyer, Kasym Duysekin, explained.

The injury report was logged and forwarded to the Anti-Corruption Service.

We are waiting for a decision on this (registration) in the KUI, he noted.

The KNB employees named in Adilbekov's complaint remain in their positions.

Mautkanov expressed optimism about the appeals process:

I hope that we will finally be convinced that law and justice in our country are higher than the position and opportunities of certain individuals.

Meanwhile, Vice Minister Akkenzhenov filed his own appeal, challenging what he viewed as an overly lenient suspended sentence for co-defendant Yerlan Saudegerov.

Smagulov argued that Saudegerov had shown no remorse or admission of guilt.

We filed an appeal specifically regarding the excessive leniency of the punishment imposed on Saudegerov, who was convicted of a grave crime, where no alternative punishment is provided for, except for imprisonment. Saudegerov and Adilbekov did not admit guilt in committing the crime, did not express remorse. Throughout the trial and pre-trial proceedings, they accused Akkenzhenov of committing a corruption crime, and they continue to accuse him,  stated the official's attorney, Bekbolat Smagulov.

Smagulov contended that the defendants had deliberately damaged Akkenzhenov's reputation:

Thereby, they caused moral harm that was not compensated for by ordinary apologies to my client.

Notably, Akkenzhenov had previously stated he wasn't pushing for prison time for the defendants.

Saudegerov's attorney, Arsen Baimakulov, disputed the claims:

Saudegerov did not speak out about any corruption offenses either during the investigation, or in court, or after the verdict was passed on the affected Akkenzhenov. In court, he said only one thing: 'I do not understand why I am being tried.' Saudegerov was involved in the second publication, which, according to the examination, does not contain any accusations in the affirmative form.

Baimakulov also drew attention to other facts:

The Ministry of Energy referred to the fact that these documents were for official use. The court also for some reason considered that there was no need for this. But these schedules directly bear Akkenzhenov's signature. After all, the whole fuss is connected with these oil delivery schedules. And we were deprived of the opportunity to provide this evidence.

He emphasized that Akkenzhenov faced no criminal or disciplinary consequences after the posts:

I will quote the speaker of the Senate Maulen Ashimbayev. This quote is in the media: 'If a person is engaged in public politics, he must be prepared for the fact that different things will be written about him. Including defamation, insinuations, facts that do not correspond to reality. In this regard, public figures must be prepared for this. The most important thing is that a person must be honest. If I do not have any problems and if there are some insinuations, what is the point of going to court?

The three-judge panel - Zharas Arystanbekov, Eleonora Ungarsynova, and Alma Yesimova - upheld both sentences after brief deliberation.

The court determined that Adilbekov's actions undermined not just individual reputations but state institutions:

Akkenzhenov holds a responsible government position, and by publishing in the Telegram channel information that does not correspond to reality about corruption offenses committed by Akkenzhenov, having an audience of many thousands of people, the convicted realized that by doing so they were discrediting not just Akkenzhenov or the Ministry of Energy, but the entire state apparatus of the country as a whole, Judge Yesimova declared.

The court viewed their actions as particularly serious because they "significantly increase the social danger of the act due to the fact that they provoke social tension among the population."

While Adilbekov's legal team plans to take the case to the Supreme Court, he has already been transferred to a penal colony in Pavlodar following the New Year holidays.

He should have been in the Astana pre-trial detention center. Every institution in our country is created for a purpose. The temporary detention center is a temporary detention facility for those who have not yet been sanctioned for a preventive measure. The pre-trial detention center is for those who have been sanctioned but have not yet been sentenced. And the colonies are for those who are serving their sentences. But everyone here knows very well that everything is overcrowded. Mautkanov observed.

The case against Adilbekov began in March 2024, prompted by statements filed by three individuals: journalist Gulzhan Yergaliyeva, airport investor Yusuf Rashed Aljavder, and Vice Minister YYerlan Akkenzhenov. 

Their grievances centered on Adilbekov's posts in the anonymous "Dikaya Orda" Telegram channel.

The charges included falsely accusing Energy Vice Minister Akkenzhenov of corruption.

The case also led to the arrest of Yerlan Saudegerov, who had contracted the posts.

The court sentenced Adilbekov to four and a half years, while Saudegerov received a three-year suspended sentence.

Original Author: Zhadra Zhulmukhametova