Sherzat Polat Homicide Trial: Witnesses Describe Night of The Attack

Witnesses described what happened near the Kamazhay store on the night of the tragedy. An Orda.kz correspondent listened to the witnesses’ testimony.

A Witness From Above

Witnesses who arrived at the scene after the fight had ended were questioned at today's court hearing.

The first to speak was Saken Akezhanov, a resident of a five-story building opposite the store.

He said he woke up to noise and a woman’s scream. When he stepped out onto the balcony, he saw about ten people assaulting someone lying on the ground. One struck him on the head with an object.

I shouted: ‘Enough, you’ll kill (him - Ed.)!’ It all happened in a matter of minutes, I didn’t get a good look at the faces of the attackers,
the witness recalled. 

Other eyewitnesses, Arman Kusainov and Daryn Zhanbolatuly, confirmed they were at the Akimat when they received calls from worried relatives. When they arrived at the scene, they saw the aftermath: blood, shell casings, and frightened eyewitnesses.

We were standing with three or four people in front of the akimat. Daniyar Zhanbolatuly's mother called and said there was shooting, told us to come back. I was the last to arrive at the scene — a friend called me. When I arrived, everything was already over. One woman said that one person had died. I stood there for about 15 minutes and left. Then we came back, stood there for another five minutes and left again,
said Kusainov. 

According to the eyewitnesses, one person was bleeding.

One of them had blood coming out of his head. The others looked scared. The ambulance and police officers asked to leave the area. The first thing I saw at the scene was blood and a shell casing,
Zhanbolatuly’s testimony. 

Witness Nargiza Nizamedinova said she woke up at home to a woman’s scream, "Balam!" (translated from Kazakh, "My Child" Ed.). Looking out the window, she saw Nurganat ( Sherzat's uncle - Ed.) running after Sherzat. She also heard a guy shouting, "AT! AT!" ("Shoot! Ed."). Then Sherzat’s mother ran over, followed by several others.

Second Half

In the second half of the hearing, a video recording of an in-person questioning between Samat Abdikadyr (nicknamed "Chika") and Karzhaubay Nurymov (Sherzat's father) was shown.

They were questioned during the investigation because of Abdikadyr’s contradictory testimony.

Abdikadyr had also been at the Kamazhay store the night of the killing and spoke with Sherzat’s uncle. After a brief conversation with Nurganat Gaipbayev, he addressed the accused with the words "Do it."

However, during the in-person questioning, Samat Abdikadyr denied involvement, stating he did not know anyone present and had only come to buy cigarettes.

The defendants’ lawyers also spoke in court. Darkhan Askentay’s lawyer stated that his client had not received timely medical care, allegedly suffering an eye injury. The lawyer requested that the doctors who treated him be called in as witnesses.

When the court moved on to questioning the accused, Darkhan Askentay and others said they were not ready to testify. The judge then announced a recess until the next day.

The next hearing is scheduled for tomorrow, when the defendants are expected to be questioned. Orda.kz will continue to monitor developments.

Read below for details from previous hearings.

Original Author: Perizat Zharylkasyn

Read also: 

• Sherzat Polat: Main Trial Begins in Taldykorgan
• Sherzat Polat: Trial Continues in Taldykorgan (report from 18 April)
• Sherzat Polat: Trial Continues in Taldykorgan (report from 28 April)
• Sherzat Polat: Trial Continues, New Details Emerge (report from 29 April)