Former Spouse Claims Domestic Violence, Atyrau Deputy Responds

Mother of four children Nurzhamal Tazhgaliyeva from Atyrau addressed an open letter to the President of Kazakhstan, accusing her ex-husband, a regional maslikhat deputy, of years of domestic abuse, evasion of alimony payments and illegal property claims, reports an Orda correspondent.

Nurzhamal Tazhgaliyeva stated that for 12 years, she endured abuse from her husband, Aibar Yerekeshov.

In the appeal, which Tazhgaliyeva published on her Facebook, she describes in detail the episodes of abuse.

In 2018, he smashed my head with a mobile phone while I was breastfeeding my child, and in 2023 he beat me again, sitting on me with his 120-kilogram weight, the woman said.

She says she filed police reports several times but then withdrew them under pressure from her husband and his parents, who promised he would change for the sake of the children.

But he never changed, says Nurzhamal.

After the divorce, the father allegedly accumulated alimony arrears of almost six million tenge. 

According to Nurzhamal, the deputy is trying to challenge the alimony payments through court proceedings and seeking custody of the children.

Nurzhamal claims that her ex-husband deceptively took away their eldest daughter.

Now she sits uncontrolled on social media and reposts offensive content, the mother worries.

Tazhgaliyeva also claims that the police are covering up Yerekeshov's actions.

I barely managed to get a protection order, but they issued one against me too so that I wouldn't 'disturb' my ex-husband. He himself said: 'The guys themselves suggested doing this,' the woman states.

In her appeal, Nurzhamal asks for assistance initiating criminal proceedings against Yerekeshov.

A person who beat his wife, evades responsibilities to his children, and claims property cannot hold a deputy position,  she emphasizes.

Tazhgaliyeva also asks for protection of her rights and security, fearing for her children's lives and her own due to her ex-husband's possession of a firearm.

I ask for justice and protection for myself and my children. I hope the state will hear me, the woman concluded her appeal.

Deputy's Response

Atyrau regional maslikhat deputy Aibar Yerekeshov has denied the accusations.

According to Yerekeshov, all of the claims are lies and slander. He emphasized that he never raised a hand against her, and the injuries she mentioned occurred for other reasons.

I officially divorced Nurzhamal in 2023. Yes, in 2018 she received a head injury and went to the hospital. But it's necessary to clarify how this happened. She came home intoxicated and slipped. Later she was in a car accident and also received injuries. At that time, we were no longer living together, stated Yerekeshov.

The deputy also denied accusations of physical violence:

I never raised a hand against her. The only incident that could be misinterpreted occurred when I intervened to separate her from our eldest daughter. But I don't want to use this as an argument.

Yerekeshov noted that the divorce proceeded at Nurzhamal's initiative.

After she returned from Europe, where she had been for almost a month, leaving behind a nursing infant, I filed for divorce. At her request, I gave her two apartments and a car. She herself stated that she didn't need alimony,he said.

However, in December 2024, the situation changed.

She changed her mind and demanded alimony. The judicial enforcment agent made the calculation, and I informed that I would begin payments in January. I never evaded my obligations, emphasized Yerekeshov.

The deputy says the children remained with their mother, but he regularly visited them and maintained contact.

In November 2024, Yerekeshov claims, his ex-wife again left the children unsupervised and went to Almaty.

She left four children in the care of a 17-year-old girl. After this, my eldest daughter categorically refused to return to her mother. Our second child has a disability and needs special care, he noted.

Police Response

The Atyrau region police department responded to our inquiry, saying that investigative actions are ongoing:

The photographs published in the post were taken in 2018 and 2023. Based on the statement of a citizen born in 1987, protection orders were issued in 2018 and 2023, which were later revoked at the applicant's request. However, in 2024, protection orders were issued at the request of both the woman and her ex-husband. According to the applicants' statements, they were disturbing each other by phone, the police reported.

Original Author: Daniel Arturov, Second Article