Attempt to set fire to Kyrgyz policemen accused of murder was made in courtroom
BISHKEK. Feb 21 (Interfax) - Relatives of a Kyrgyz young man allegedly killed by three police officers attempted to set the defendants on fire in the courtroom, an Interior Ministry spokesman told Interfax on Friday.
The policemen charged with killing Aybek Mambetaliyev, a resident of Kyrgyzstan's northern Jumgal district, were pelted with bottles filled with petrol during a court session on February 20, he said.
Up to 80 people were involved in the incident, he said.
"Mambetaliyev's relatives captured [suspect] Zh. Sydykov, took him in an unknown direction, severely beat him and left him at a local hospital," the spokesman said.
"The whereabouts of another policeman remain unknown. The latest information available suggests that R. Toktogulov fled in the direction of the Jumgal River while being chased by these aggressive individuals," the spokesman said.
The third suspect was rushed to hospital after the incident.
An investigation has been opened.
The three officers, who serve at the Interior Ministry's Directorate for the Fight against Organized Crime and the rapid reaction force of the Jumgal district's police department, were charged with abuse of power and causing grievous bodily harm to Mambetaliyev, the spokesman said.
"During the court session, relatives of the young man who died at the Kara-Keche coal mine grew frustrated with the court's handling of the case and staged mass disturbances in the courtroom," he said.
Earlier, Mambetaliyev's relatives attacked investigators in charge of this case and damaged a police car.