Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Sanzhar Adilov, on the sidelines of the Senate, put an end to the question of amnesty for convicted bloggers Yerbolat Zhanabylov and Elmira Tolegenova. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Kursiv Media.
"Regarding the Zhanabylov bloggers, I will answer categorically no. They are not subject to amnesty — neither for exemption from criminal liability nor for reduction of sentences. This article directly excludes the application of amnesty," Adilov said.
Earlier, the criminal court of Astana passed a verdict in the case of the spouses. Zhanabylov received two years of suspended imprisonment with probation control. He is prohibited from changing his place of residence without notifying the authorities, leaving home from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., and visiting entertainment venues.
Tolegenova was also sentenced to two years in prison, but the execution of the sentence was postponed until April 27, 2028, due to the presence of minor children. The court warned that if she abandons the child or violates public order, the postponement will be canceled.
The prosecutor requested four years of actual imprisonment for both.
Zhanabylov and Tolegenova were accused of illegal entrepreneurship and money laundering. According to the investigation of the Financial Monitoring Agency, the bloggers' revenue amounted to 247 million tenge. During the investigation, they offered to compensate only 50-60 million in exchange for amnesty, and investigators rejected this.