Organizer of Attacks on Media Found to Be Mentally Unfit and Reportedly Named “Client”

Several forensic psychiatric examinations have confirmed Arkady Klebanov’s incapacity, the alleged organizer of 30 attacks on the Kazakhstani media. Orda’s editor-in-Chief, Gulnara Bazhenova, has expressed her doubts about this. She suggests that this step is probably part of a secret deal in which Klebanov took all the blame.

On August 16, Orda’s editor-in-chief, Gulnara Bazhkenova, got acquainted with an examination’s results regarding the criminal case related to the attacks on the Kazakhstani media. It follows from the documents that the main suspect, i.e. the main coordinator, Arkady Klebanov, has been found mentally unfit.

Experts have discovered that he has a schizotypal personality disorder. He, having such a diagnosis, allegedly did not realize the danger of his actions. According to experts’ conclusions, Klebanov poses no threat to others or to himself.

Despite Klebanov's unfit mental state, according to the investigator, the case will still go to court. Klebanov will be charged as the client and organizer of the attacks. I have information from several unconfirmed sources that Klebanov still gave the name of the client. This is a "family member", but within the framework of political agreements they will not touch him, and it is quite possible that Klebanov's diagnosis is part of a deal so that he takes full responsibility,  Bazhenova said.

In his testimony, Klebanov claimed that he received “an order” for bloggers who spoke unflatteringly about a prominent Russian figure. He was instructed to find people to "break" their arms and legs.

Klebanov has been charged under Articles 115 of the Criminal Code "Threat", 147 of the Criminal Code "Violation of privacy", 158 of the Criminal Code "Obstruction of journalistic activity", 202 of the Criminal Code "Intentional destruction or damage to someone else's property" and 293 of the Criminal Code "Hooliganism".

A journalist from Orda’s editorial office requested information about Klebanov's whereabouts from the Police Department. But at the time of the article's publication, the journalist was not been able to receive an official response from the department.

However, according to the investigator who is conducting the case, Klebanov has been undergoing treatment at a mental health center in Almaty for three weeks. He is being held in a specially designated ward for criminals. He is being guarded by SOBR staff.

In a conversation with Gulnara Bazhkenova, a PD employee suggested that Klebanov would undergo compulsory treatment in a specialized republican psychiatric hospital with intensive surveillance located in the village of Aktas, Almaty region.

Orda’s editorial board contacted the medical institution for comment. But, referring to medical privacy, they refused to provide information. The Health Department, when asked by a journalist whether Klebanov was in a psychiatric hospital, they replied that they had no right to disclose personal information about patients.

However, The Committee of the Criminal-Executive System of The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan informed an Orda correspondent that Klebanov remains in custody in a pre-trial detention center.

Orda’s website has been subjected to DDOS attacks since mid-July 2022. Various threats were received by our editor-in-chief, managing editor, and journalists.

Elmedia’s and Ulysmedia’s websites and their management were also targeted. Attackers also torched the cars of Vadim Boreyko’s camera operator.

At the end of February, suspects in the series of attacks on journalists were apprehended. Their coordinator turned out to be Oleksiy Tokarev, a former Ukrainian cyber police officer. He carried out tasks for Arkady Klebanov, whom the police lured out of Dubai.

On February 21, the Ministry of Internal Affairs reported that they had created an interdepartmental investigative task force to solve the crimes being committed against bloggers and journalists.

The main suspect in the case is Arkady Klebanov (Manevich), the son of Marina Klebanova and Sergei Manevich. The latter was one of the assistants of Dariga Nazarbayeva's ex–husband, Rakhat Aliyev.

The suspect says he had organized all the attacks because of personal motives and old claims against well-known media. He designated the targets and provocations independently, for which he hired a group of hackers and people to carry out orders. He paid for the work with profits made from cryptocurrency.

Original Author: Damira Augambayeva

DISCLAIMER: This is a translated piece. The text has been modified, the content is the same. Please refer to the original piece in Russian for accuracy.