Zhanbolat Mamay told about beating, extortion and threats in confinement cell

On 21 February the editor in chief of the newspaper "Tribuna. Sayasi kalam" Zhanbolat Mamay informed from the pretrial detention center №18 that he was  beaten and got, extorted money and has serious reasons to be under apprehension of his life.

"I ask you to take measures to safeguard my personal security.  Until Friday evening I was quarantined in the cell N 81, and then transferred to a cell N 197. Please transfer me to a safe place, possibly to a solitary ward. I fear for my life and safety ", - Zh.Mamay wrote in a statement to his lawyer Zhanar Balgabaeva.

Besides, he  passed a note to the journalist of newspaper "Tribuna. Sayasi kalam " Inga Imanbay.

"I declare that I was beaten in a prison cell. I am not going to commit a suicide. If it happens to me, it would be murder. I fear for my life. I was told that they would get me in any jail cell, and this is not a joke. I was beaten in the cell. They demanded 200 thousand tenge. They told me to go back on my testimony", - Mamay wrote in his letter.

According to journalist Sergey Duvanov’s post in  Facebook, Mamay was threatened to be hanged in the cell if he would not change his testimony.

Searches in the editorial office of newspaper “Tribuna. Sayasi Kalam” and in the house of its editor-in-chief Zhanbolat Mamay were conducted on February 10, 2017. Later the same day Zhanbolat Mamay was detained by officers of National Anti-Corruption Bureau within the scope of investigation of the case over embezzlement of “BTA” bank funds by Mukhtar Ablyazov.

On February 11, 2017 Medeu District Court of Almaty sanctioned arrest of the editor-in-chief of  “Tribuna” newspaper Zhanbolat Mamay for two months within the frameworks of investigation of the criminal case on embezzlement “BTA Bank” funds by Mukhtar Ablyazov.

Before his arrest  Zhanbolat Mamay made a public statement:

“I, Zhanbolat Mamay, I do not plead myself guilty to charges brought against me. I have never carried out any business or financial activity. I consider this criminal proceeding to be politically motivated pressure brought upon my journalistic activity and attempt to close newspaper “Tribuna”.

On February 20 the Almaty City Court heard the appeal on Medeu district court’s order of detention for  the editor in chief of the newspaper "Tribune. Sayasi kalam "Zhanbolat Mamay. According to Mamay’s lawyer Zhanar Balgabayeva, the court rejected to release Mamay on bail saying that this measure is not applicable to the charges such as filed against him. Thus the City Court upheld the decision of the first-instance court.