Trial of Activists and Entrepreneurs: Kusheyev's Wife Testifies

The main trial of activists Damir Kusheyev and Ruslan Karimov, and entrepreneurs Kurmangazy Aitmukanov and Andrey Belyansky, has entered its final stage.

The defendants deny guilt in the case of “Extortion on an especially large scale by a group of persons by prior conspiracy.” They claim their case was fabricated at the behest of Bakhtiyar Blayev, who allegedly seeks revenge against Aitmukanov and Belyansky for actions that led to his 2023 conviction and imprisonment.

Kusheyev and Karimov were allegedly targeted for filming a video showing Blayev’s violations of prison conditions, Orda.kz reports.

According to the prosecution, the defendants blackmailed the victim with a compromising video and demanded 30.5 million tenge in exchange for their silence. The indictment also states that in 2023, Kusheyev extorted 40,000 tenge from a police officer who solved the theft of a neighbor’s boy’s scooter.

Blocking of Accounts

At the hearing, Akmeir, the wife of defendant Damir Kusheyev, testified for the defense. She described the circumstances surrounding the first episode in her husband’s case, claiming pressure during the investigation, and appealed to the judge and jury for a fair verdict.

According to her testimony, on August 24, 2023, the family went to the MEGA shopping mall. The eldest son borrowed a scooter from a neighbor. When they left the mall, the scooter was gone. Kusheyev reviewed the CCTV footage with mall security and sent his family home.

Damir returned home at midnight. He said he saw the thieves on the video. They were boys, 10–12 years old. I felt bad in front of my neighbor, whose son's scooter had been stolen, and I asked my husband to find out everything. In the spring, Damir told me that a police officer had found the thieves and returned his money. He gave the 40,000 tenge to the neighbor.

During the preliminary hearing, the prosecutor repeatedly cited 100,000 tenge instead of 40,000, which appeared in the indictment.

After Orda.kz published an article using the higher amount, Kusheyeva and her husband’s lawyers provided the original document, confirming the correct figure was 40,000 tenge.

After the first court session, reporters asked the prosecutor whether the discrepancy was accidental. He insisted he had said 40,000, even though the audio recording clearly indicated he had named 100,000.

Neither the judge nor the defense noted the inconsistency at the time.

Kusheyeva also testified that the police investigator in charge of the case allegedly exerted psychological pressure on her.

On January 27, 2025, an investigator blocked all my bank cards. I received monthly benefits for having many children and for caring for my twins. The investigator blocked not only my social security account but also others. One account contained 230,000 tenge, which I had been saving for the twins' birthday celebrations. Another account contained another 30,000 tenge. Ultimately, I was left without any money. My husband was in prison, and I was living with the children in a rented apartment. I was at a loss and didn't know what to do. So I recorded a video message in which I said that if the police department was blocking my accounts, then they should provide for my five children.

She called the investigator to ask why her accounts were frozen. He summoned her to the police station.

I told him right away that I wouldn't sign a non-disclosure agreement regarding the pre-trial investigation or testify against my husband. I wrote a statement asking to be appointed Damir's public defender. But the investigator refused to grant me such status. Then he turned my statement into an interrogation. He didn't explain my rights, after which I was no longer allowed to see my husband.

At the preliminary hearing, the defense had stated that Kusheyeva’s social accounts (financial accounts - Ed.) were frozen for three months. She clarified in court that they were blocked for two weeks — until February 11, 2025, when the investigator lifted the restriction.

I gave the investigator all my documents, including the three-digit PIN for my card. Then, on January 31st, I started receiving suspicious messages on my phone. For example, they said I'd been approved for a loan of 200,000 tenge for three months. There was a link, but I didn't click it. Then I received a message saying access was gained to my personal data for processing and storage. I immediately changed the three-digit PIN on my card. I think all this was no accident.

Judge Bakhytkhan Bakirbayev suspected scammers were responsible and asked whether any loans had been taken out in her name. She said no.

The witness also stated that her family and friends had faced pressure during the investigation.

We were under pressure from our community activist friends living in other regions. They called me and asked me to remove videos in support of Damir from social media. One of them said he was initially offered money to persuade me to delete the video. Then he was threatened with criminal prosecution under the same article as my husband. An activist from Taldykorgan said he was summoned to the local National Security Committee Department, where he was told not to defend Damir. I asked him to come to Almaty and participate in the trial, to support my husband, but he said he couldn't because he was forbidden to do so.

The state prosecutor questioned why she was not surprised that a police officer had transferred 40,000 tenge to her husband.

I don't interfere in my husband's activities, so I didn't ask about the transfer. My job is to raise our children.

The prosecutor also asked about the family’s sources of income.

Damir is a sole proprietor. Since 2016, he's had his own business, which offers a service called 'sober driver.' It was profitable because such services were in demand. I'm sure some restaurants in Almaty still have signs advertising Damir's cell phone number. When my husband was away from home for long periods, his trusted drivers would work in his place. Now, the business has been temporarily suspended because my husband is in pretrial detention.

At the end of her testimony, she appealed to the jury:

I am writing to you as a wife and mother of five children. They have been waiting for their father for nine months, crying every day, asking me when he will come home, and I don't know what to tell them. My husband is not an extortionist. He has never forced anyone or demanded anything. He always speaks the truth and defends justice. He is being accused not of a crime, but of integrity. He never intended to enrich himself. He simply wanted his children to live in an honest country. Only you can decide whether the five children will live with their father or without him. I believe that your decision will be based not only on the letter of the law, but also on your conscience. Thank you very much for your attention!

Defendant Damir Kusheyev confirmed his wife’s account, adding that the extortion episode involving 40,000 tenge stemmed from the investigator’s review of his transactions.

That led police to Yeldar Serikov, an operative with the Bostandyq District Police Department, who later filed a complaint against him.

I don't understand how this case even got to court? The man hid the fact that he was being extorted for months, and then suddenly reported it. As a police officer, he should have filed a report immediately. Then there wouldn't have been any questions for him. When I learned that Serikov filed a report against me in February 2025, I responded on July 9th by writing to the Prosecutor General's Office asking for him to be questioned in my presence. My lawyer and I requested the case file on the scooter theft, but they refused because I wasn't a party to the criminal proceedings. In my opinion, no investigation into the theft was ever conducted. I heard that it was archived on October 9th, 2023.

Kusheyev said he only helped compensate a neighbor for property damage out of embarrassment.

Serikov called me and said he'd found the thieves and they were willing to pay everything. He asked what I wanted. I told him to deposit the money into my bank account, and I'd transfer it to the neighbor, the mother of the affected boy. Serik asked that if his management called me, I should say I had no complaints. The case file contains a receipt stating that the neighbor's mother received 40,000 tenge from me and has no complaints. She's willing to testify in court.

He argued that the extortion charges were fabricated and politically motivated due to his civic activism.

The Defendant’s Statements

A heated exchange then took place in court between defendant Kusheyev and one of the state prosecutors regarding the alleged extortion of 30.5 million tenge from Bakhtiyar Blayev.

Prosecutor:

Kusheyev, did you receive monetary compensation from Aitmukanov for an interview with him about the conflict with Blayev?

Kusheyev:

— No. I conducted the interview based on my inner convictions and civic position.

Prosecutor:

Before publishing the video about prison conditions in a penal colony, did you coordinate the script or footage with Aitmukanov? Was there such an agreement between you?

Kusheyev:

— No. I've already said that no one can influence me! Like, publish it from this angle or write it that way. I publish it as I see fit. Regarding the video, I posted it after I received a comment from the head of the penal colony-settlement that Blayev had committed a violation. He had no right to drive a vehicle or leave the colony grounds.

However, I didn't focus on Blayev, but rather raised the general question of why we, the taxpayers, should have to support penal colonies-settlements at our own expense.

Prosecutor:

What kind of relationship did you have with Karimov?

Kusheyev:

He assisted me as a qualified lawyer. We signed a relevant agreement either in September or October 2024, and he advised me on various legal matters. Let me explain: previously, government officials and businessmen had filed defamation lawsuits against me and sometimes won.

To avoid such mistakes in the future, I turned to Ruslan. I don't remember the terms of the agreement now, but I remember paying him only once.

He also made videos for himself. For example, how he exposed unscrupulous bottled water producers. We later made a couple of videos together, and the Sanitary and Epidemiological Service (SES - Ed.) confirmed the violations.

Prosecutor:

In your testimony, you emphasized that you fight corruption and champion the rule of law and justice. So why, when you learned of the accident involving Aitmukanov and Blayev, didn't you call 911 and report that they had left the scene?

Kusheyev:

According to Aitmukanov, he called the police. Why should I have if I wasn't involved in the accident or a witness? If it had been a serious accident, I would have called. But I saw Blayev's car; no broken bumpers or broken windows. It was a minor accident.

The parties involved could have come to an agreement among themselves. Besides, Bakhtiyar Blayev's father and brother, Daniyar, pulled up to the gas station. He introduced himself as a lawyer. Why did I have to interfere?"

Prosecutor:

An accident is an accident. Do you determine the severity of the violation yourself? If it's a minor accident, do you just ignore it?

Kusheyev:

In such cases, you sometimes have to wait a long time for the police. Creating traffic jams, plus insurance issues— why bother with all these unnecessary problems? It's easier to resolve everything on the spot.

Prosecutor:

Did you know that it is illegal to negotiate on the spot and leave the scene of an accident?

Kusheyev:

— No, where did you get that from, and why didn’t you ask Blayev, involved in the accident, why he left the scene?

Prosecutor:

Did you know that Aitmukanov was ultimately charged with a traffic accident? He was at fault!

Kusheyev:

What kind of moral principles are you talking about?! You'd better look at yourself! Every time you open a website, they're always reporting that some prosecutor was caught taking a bribe, or that one of them was causing a disturbance!

Prosecutor:

You are avoiding a direct answer.

Kusheyev:

How can I get the simple idea across to you that I wasn't interested in that accident? I was preoccupied with something else! And you're still going on about your own thing. Are you going to lecture me on the morality of the matter?!

At this point, Judge Bakhytkhan Bakirbayev intervened in the exchange:

Kusheyev, calm down! We've had a lot of bloggers and activists convicted of various crimes lately. What are you talking about prosecutors? You can't tar everyone with the same brush. If you show disrespect for the court and argue, we can conduct the trial without you.

The defense lawyer immediately objected:

"Honorable Judge! You're the only one raising your voice here! Don't put pressure on my client. I'm reprimanding you!" 

When the tension subsided, the prosecutor continued questioning.

Prosecutor:

Kusheyev, please tell me, when you learned that Blayev had violated the prison colony's rules, why didn't you immediately call the facility's administration? Why didn't you get the city's Department of Penitentiary System (DUIS - Ed.) officers to come and file a report against Blayev for violating the rules? Why did you facilitate Blayev's travel outside the city if you knew it was prohibited?

Kusheyev:

Why did I need to call the DUIS if Karimov and I went to the penal colony and received a comment from management? Besides, I'm not a DUIS or oversight agency employee to criticize Blayev for violations!"

Prosecutor:

At the last court hearing, you spoke about violations of the law and order in the KUIS institutions. Then why didn't you write about them on your social media pages? Did you have any evidence confirming corruption in these institutions?

Kusheyev:

I knew about them from social media. For example, I read a post that in 2019, pretrial detainees from SI-18 (Almaty pre-trial detention facility – Ed.) went to the sauna accompanied by DUIS officers.

But I didn't mention that or any other incidents on my accounts. Why dredge up the past? On January 20, 2025, I personally documented a violation of prison conditions in the 13th penal colony-settlement; that was enough for me. I posted the video! I'll just say that when I was on a bike ride through the eastern region of the country, local residents complained to me about corruption in government agencies.

Prosecutor:

Did they suggest that violations of the law had been committed, or did they show you evidence to support their claims?

Kusheyev:

They assumed it. By the way, I received verbal confirmation that there is corruption in minimum security facilities. They moved four guys into our cell who had previously been in a penal colony and were awaiting transfer to other facilities. So, they told us that you don't have to serve time. You pay the penal colony administration 450,000 tenge and don't report for a year. You only report when the inspection commission arrives.

Prosecutor:

Have you, as a public figure, contacted law enforcement agencies with this information?

Kusheyev:

The KNB officers did it for me. They uncovered corruption and held the prison warden accountable for it.

Prosecutor:

What did you record the video on January 20, 2025?

Kusheyev:

I recorded everything on my dashcam at the gas station. The investigator later confiscated that video. I didn't film anything in the private judicial enforcement officer's office.

Prosecutor:

You said that on January 21st, you and Karimov returned to the State District Power Plant to retrieve video recordings to support your claims about Blayev's detention violations. You asked your lawyer to retrieve them if they refused. Did either of you receive this video recording?

Kusheyev:

— No. The security guard at the building where the private judicial enforcement officer's office is located gave me the owner's phone number. I called him and explained the situation. He said we could pick up the recordings on Friday, January 24th. I was detained on January 22nd. As far as I know, the investigative authorities seized the recording, but I don't know whether they added it to the criminal case file or not.

Prosecutor:

At the last court hearing, you stated that Blayev would face a harsher sentence for violating the prison rules. How did you learn this, or why did you decide this?

Kusheyev:

From the prison warden. I honestly thought Blayev would be transferred to one of the general-security prisons in Zarechensk for violating the rules, but the justice colonel said he wouldn't face such a punishment.

The prosecutor’s final question concerned Kusheyev’s sources of income. The defendant replied that, in addition to his “sober driver” business, he received sponsorships from businessmen supporting projects on domestic tourism and the legacy of Abay.

He and his brother Daulet walked the 1,200-kilometer route from Almaty to Semey for Abai’s 175th anniversary, and in 2023, completed bike rides across eastern Kazakhstan and 20 countries.

At the end of his statement, Kusheyev mentioned that police initially investigated the case under Article 389 (“Arbitrariness”) of the Criminal Code, but later reclassified it under Article 194 (“Extortion”).

On January 23, during interrogation, I heard the head of the PD's Organized Crime Department say that our case was under the supervision of the Minister of Internal Affairs. That says something, right?
Kusheyev asked meaningfully.

Original Author: Zhanar Kusanova