A POLITICIAN has sparked outrage in Kazakhstan after he was seen beating his wife to death on CCTV in a horrific eight-hour attack.
Shocking footage showed businessman Kuandyk Bishimbayev, 44, punching and kicking Saltanat Nukenova, 31, at a family restaurant in November 2023.
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Kazakhstan’s former Economy Minister was accused of torturing and killing his wife, despite attempts to maintain his innocence for several weeks.
He finally admitted to beating his wife and “unintentionally” causing her death in court last month.
Bishimbayev had previously been arrested for bribery in 2018, although he spent less than two years of his ten-year sentence in prison before being pardoned.
Nukenova was found dead in the BAU restaurant – owned by a relative of her husband – in Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, on November 9 last year.
Disturbing CCTV footage showed the couple talking before father-of-four Bishimbayev grabbed his wife by the hair and dragged her from the scene.
According to Nukenova’s mother, eight hours of torture followed.
His daughter died as a result of brain trauma after several blows to the head.
Bishimbayev’s lawyers initially challenged medical evidence that indicated this was the cause of Ms. Nukenova’s death.
They also made attempts to portray Bishimbayev’s wife as prone to jealousy and violence.
This was despite there being no video from the restaurant’s security cameras played in court that showed her attacking Bishimbayev.
According to German broadcaster Deutsche Welle, restaurant staff were banned from calling emergency services.
Instruction was also given to erase CCTV footage under the pretext of technical failure.
The trial is the first of its kind to be broadcast online in Kazakhstan and easily accessible to its 19 million inhabitants.
As a result, Nukenova’s death captured the nation’s attention, sparking calls for new legislation to combat domestic violence.
Tens of thousands of people have signed petitions calling for new laws to hold those guilty of abuse accountable.
Senators have since passed a bill toughening spousal abuse laws — dubbed “Saltanat’s Law.”
Who is Kuandyk Bishimbayev?
KUANDYK Bishimbayev is currently on trial for the murder of his wife, after being accused of beating her to death.
But the businessman, who is also Kazakhstan’s former Minister of National Economy, is already well known to law enforcement authorities.
Bishimbayev, 44, was once seen as a fresh, Western-educated face of Kazakhstan’s government and a longtime “favorite” of former leader Nursultan Nazarbayev.
In 2018, however, he was arrested for bribery and placed in a maximum security penal system institution.
In February 219, he appealed for pardon and saw his sentence reduced to four years, before being pardoned less than two years after his initial ten-year sentence.
Bishimbayev was born in the city of Kyzyl-Orda (now Kyzylorda) in 1980.
In 2001, he earned a master’s degree in business administration from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. as part of the Bolashak scholarship.
In May 2016, he was appointed Minister of National Economy of Kazakhstan following waves of unrest during protests against land reforms to replace Erbolat Dosaev.
He was eventually fired from his position on December 28, 2016.
Nukenova’s brother, Aitbek Amangeldy, a key prosecution witness in the case, said he has no doubt that his sister’s tragic fate has changed attitudes toward domestic violence in Kazakhstan.
“People change their minds when they see directly what it’s like when a person is tortured,” he told the Associated Press.
During a court session on April 1, Bishimbayev apologized to Nukenova’s relatives for her death.
“It was always very difficult for me at first to realize her death,” he said, as reported by UNN.
“I want to apologize. I do not expect forgiveness, but it is my responsibility. I know this is an irreparable loss and I am complicit in the circumstances.”
Bishimbayev would then talk about his life with his murdered wife for almost five hours, without getting to the murder episode.
He then asked the court to postpone the hearing of this episode until the next session, referring to the fact that he was “tired of talking”.
How can you get help
Women’s Aid offers this advice to victims and their families:
- Always keep your phone close by.
- Contact charities for help, including Women’s Aid’s live chat helpline and services like SupportLine.
- If you are in danger, call 999.
- Familiarize yourself with the Silent Solution by reporting abuse without talking on the phone, instead dial “55”.
- Always keep some cash with you, including change for a pay phone or bus ticket.
- If you suspect your partner is about to attack you, try moving to a lower-risk area of the house – for example, where there is an exit and access to a phone.
- Avoid the kitchen and garage where there are likely to be knives or other weapons. Avoid places where you could become trapped, such as the bathroom, or where you could be locked in a closet or other small space.
If you are a victim of domestic violence, the SupportLine is open on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 6pm to 8pm on 01708 765200. The charity’s email support service is open weekdays and weekends weekdays during the crisis – messageinfo@supportline.org.uk.
Women’s Aid offers a live chat service – available on weekdays from 8am to 6pm and on weekends from 10am to 6pm.
You can also call the free 24-hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline on 0808 2000 247.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
