Five jailed in Kyrgyzstan over fatal bride kidnapping

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan — A court in Kyrgyzstan's capital Bishkek sentenced five men to several years in prison for a deadly bride kidnapping that sparked protests in the Central Asian country where the practice is systemic.

The body of 27-year-old Aizada Kanatbekova was found outside the city in April, two days after security camera footage widely shared on social media showed her being bundled into a car.

An investigation found that she was raped and strangled in the vehicle.

Her killer—taxi driver Zamirbek Tengizbaev who had stalked her with the aim of forcing her to marry him—committed suicide in the car afterwards.

The court sent five of his associates—also taxi drivers born between 1991 and 1995—who participated in the abduction to between six and seven years in prison.

It also ordered them to pay a total of around $1,180 in compensation to Kanatbekova's family.

Her mother said she had bought a ticket to Turkey and planned to travel there to earn money to buy a house.

One of the convicted men, Siymyk Moldosariev, apologized to the victim's family.

"I ask for forgiveness to the girl's close ones. I have nothing else to say," he said via video-link, as the men were not brought to court because of the pandemic.

Kanatbekova's killer was charged with kidnapping and murder but the case was closed because of his suicide.

He had earlier served prison sentences in Russia for robbery, and was deported after being released from a Russian prison. 

The murder case had sparked protests in Bishkek, in which demonstrators called for the sacking of the interior minister and the city police chief.

Following the April protests, President Sadyr Japarov said Kanatbekova's death was a "tragedy and pain not only for her family, but also for our entire state," adding that the incident should be "the last bride kidnapping history."

Bride kidnapping, known locally as Ala Kachuu, has its roots in the Central Asian country's nomadic past and persisted into the Soviet era, albeit on a smaller scale. 

But the practice became chronic after the country gained independence in 1991, with convictions extremely rare and survivors reluctant to file complaints due to threats of violence and cultural stigma.

According to the UN Women's office in Bishkek, one in five marriages in the impoverished republic of 6.5 million are concluded after a bride kidnapping incident. — Agence France-Presse