The Murder of Nurbol Qayipbayev

On March 29, 2024, security guard Nurbol Qayipbayev was attacked while working at the Merkur Towers residential complex in Almaty. He later died in hospital. The prosecution accused resident Askar Tastandiyev, and a closed criminal trial ended in April 2025 with convictions for murder and a separate privacy offense.

Nurbol Qayipbayev

Kazakh reporting identified Qayipbayev as a 30-year-old security guard and a husband and father. Residents described him positively after his death. This dossier centers the documented facts of the criminal case rather than the social status of the defendant's family or speculation that circulated around the incident.

The March 2024 attack

According to the findings reported from the criminal proceeding, Qayipbayev was working at the residential complex when a confrontation developed with Askar Tastandiyev. Reporting by Kazinform, Tengrinews and Orda states that Tastandiyev used a vehicle during the attack and continued the assault after the initial impact. Qayipbayev was taken to hospital in critical condition and died from his injuries.

The case drew additional attention because Tastandiyev is the son of a former public official. That relationship is background only. The conviction rests on the evidence and findings in Tastandiyev's own criminal case, not on his father's former position.

Charges and closed trial

The Specialized Inter-District Criminal Court of Almaty considered charges under Article 99 of Kazakhstan's Criminal Code for homicide with particular cruelty and Article 147 concerning violation of private-life protections. The privacy count arose from separate conduct involving a former partner and sensitive material. Because that evidence implicated private-life information, the court heard the proceeding behind closed doors.

Keeping those charges distinct matters editorially. The homicide victim and the person affected by the privacy offense were not the same person, and the second count should not be used to embellish the murder narrative.

April 2025 judgment

On April 9, 2025, the Almaty court found Tastandiyev guilty. The court imposed 19 years for the murder offense and four years for the privacy offense, then applied Kazakhstan's rules on cumulative punishment to reach a final sentence of 22 years in prison.

The court also ordered financial compensation to the affected parties. Contemporary coverage differed slightly in how individual civil-award figures were summarized, so this file does not use those amounts as a central factual claim. The core criminal outcome—conviction and 22-year sentence—is consistently reported by multiple outlets citing the court.

Appeal

The victim's family later challenged the punishment as too lenient and sought a harsher outcome. On August 6, 2025, the Almaty City Court considered the appeal and did not increase the 22-year sentence. Tengrinews reported that the punishment remained unchanged.

The appeal therefore did not erase the underlying conviction or convert the matter back into an unresolved accusation. The documented legal position remains a murder conviction with a 22-year custodial sentence.

Timeline

1. March 29, 2024
   Attack at Merkur Towers

   Security guard Nurbol Qayipbayev is attacked at the Almaty residential complex and later dies in hospital.

2. January 2025
   Main trial begins

   The Almaty court proceeds with a closed trial because the case also includes a separate privacy-related charge involving sensitive material.

3. April 9, 2025
   Conviction and 22-year sentence

   Askar Tastandiyev is convicted of murder with particular cruelty and the separate privacy offense.

4. August 6, 2025
   Appeal does not increase sentence

   The Almaty City Court leaves the 22-year punishment in place.

Current status

Solved / Adjudicated. Askar Tastandiyev was convicted of murdering Nurbol Qayipbayev and received a final combined sentence of 22 years for the murder and separate privacy offense. The documented 2025 appellate proceeding left the punishment unchanged.