Judge Sends Almaty Airport Hostage Case Back for Further Investigation

The presiding judge has returned the case of the Almaty airport hostage incident for additional investigation, citing the need for a thorough review of all the circumstances, reports Orda.kz.

Judge Dastan Almagambetov stated that the pre-trial investigation authorities committed several significant procedural violations, making it impossible to proceed under an expedited process:

Per the Criminal Procedure Code, expedited pre-trial investigation is not applied if the defendant does not admit guilt. According to the expedited pre-trial investigation protocol, Baratov took a hostage in order to force the organization to grant him access to the aircraft. The court established that the defendant does not admit guilt in this part: he says he did not make any demands, including those related to boarding a plane. It was also established that during the examination of the case materials in the main hearing, the pre-trial investigation authorities did not take all necessary measures to determine the circumstances required for a proper resolution of the case. Taking all of this into account, the court decided to return the case to the prosecutor to address the violations and conduct a full investigation, the judge explained. 

Baratov will remain in custody as a preventive measure, with his arrest extended by one month.

The initial charges include: 

• Hostage-taking (Article 261, Part 2, Clause 4 of the Criminal Code of Kazakhstan) 7 to 12 years in prison with confiscation of property
• Hooliganism involving a weapon (Article 293, Part 3) — 3 to 7 years in prison
  
• False report of an act of terrorism (Article 273) — a fine of up to 5,000 MRP or up to 5 years of imprisonment

At a previous hearing, Baratov partially admitted guilt and spoke about his motives. He cited financial hardship and a head injury allegedly sustained during military service in Afghanistan.

Original Author: Aliya Askarova