Kazakh prison guard convicted of raping inmate
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 30 September 2016 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Kazakh prison guard convicted of raping inmate, 30 September 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5975a03af.html [accessed 28 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
September 30, 2016
A court in Almaty has sentenced a former prison guard to nine years in jail in an inmate rape case.
The Turksib District Court on September 30 found Ruslan Khakimov guilty of raping inmate Natalya Slekishina and sentenced him the same day.
Slekishina, who gave a birth to a girl while in custody, filed a lawsuit against several guards of an Almaty detention center, accusing them of gang-raping her.
A DNA test revealed that Khakimov had fathered the child. The other prison guards were not charged but were brought to the trial that started on August 11 as witnesses.
Khakimov pleaded not guilty.
Slekishina, who continues to serve her prison term, said she is satisfied with the court's decision but added that she will work on bringing to justice other prison guards who she says raped her.
Slekishina's lawyer, Aiman Omarova, called the court's ruling precedent-setting and said her client will file a lawsuit against the Kazakh government for failure to provide secure conditions in custody.
Omarova added that rape in custody by prison guards can be defined as torture, stressing that Kazakhstan has international obligations to prevent torture in its penitentiary system.
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
