New Details in Death of Conscript in Mangystau Region Emerge

Yerkebulan Sagyndykov died while serving in the Mangystau region. His relatives distrust the official statements from authorities, claiming they learned about his death from fellow soldiers — and now they allege extortion, Orda.kz reports. 

Sagyndykov volunteered for military service in Almaty in March. By profession, he was an emergency medical technician.

The incident occurred on October 7 at the Ustirt border outpost. Following orders from his unit commander, Sagyndykov went to the depot to get gasoline to flush the radiator of a diesel generator.

He reportedly inhaled fuel fumes and lost consciousness. About ten minutes later, a fellow soldier found him unconscious and tried to render aid, but Sagyndykov died.

The National Security Committee’s press service confirmed his death:

A tragic incident occurred at the Border Service Department for the Mangystau Region. A conscript soldier died. According to preliminary information, the incident happened due to non-compliance with safety regulations during maintenance work.

Police have opened a criminal case, and an additional investigation is underway.

Yerkebulan’s relatives insist that he faced pressure in the army. On October 8, his body was brought to Aqtau for examination, and he was buried the next day.

He served in Almaty for three months. When he took the oath, he was perfectly healthy. He worked in his specialty, played football, even won the title of best player there. Yerkebulan enjoyed serving in Almaty. Three months later, he was transferred to Ustirt — and that’s when the problems began, said Azhar, his brother’s wife.

She added that after his transfer to Mangystau, Yerkebulan began asking for money more often and told his girlfriend he didn’t like it there.

Yerkebulan told his friend and girlfriend that he wanted to go home. He complained about constant arguments with other soldiers. Later, he asked his mother if it was possible to be transferred. The tragic news came at four in the morning — without any explanation, Azhar said.

According to the family, although he worked in his field during training, documents listed his position as an electric diesel operator.

When everyone was having dinner, they allegedly sent him to work with gasoline. They said he was poisoned while pouring gasoline into a canister. That makes no sense — it’s supposed to be done with a hose. When we asked to see it, they showed us a brand new hose delivered that very day, Azhar said.

She described Ustirt as a desolate, dusty post with harsh living conditions. Eighty soldiers were stationed there, but now only around forty remain.

Yerkebulan told his friends there was no drinking water for about ten days. Forget washing — there wasn’t even water to drink. Those who had the means moved their children elsewhere. When they called an ambulance, it took three and a half hours to arrive. A fellow soldier provided first aid. There wasn’t even a doctor there to administer first aid. Some soldiers were poisoned by the water and ended up in the hospital, Azhar told Orda.kz.

Yerkebulan was originally from Qyzylorda. Coincidentally, on October 5, another border guard from Qyzylorda — Nurasyl — also died, this time in the Almaty region.

Since the beginning of 2025 alone, several young soldiers — Dinmukhamed Shynarbek, Salamat Sabitov, Dastan Kurmanbek, and a conscript of the Air Assault Forces — have died.

Official explanations often cite suicide or safety violations, but families reject these claims and are demanding independent investigations.

Original Author: Assem Zhuken