One of two suspects wanted in connection with the attempted murder in Kyiv of Kazakh opposition activist and journalist Aidos Sadyqov was arrested by Kazakh authorities after turning himself in, Kazakhstan's Prosecutor-General's Office said on June 22.
Sadyqov, an outspoken critic of Kazakh President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev and his government, was shot on June 18 while he was in his car in the Ukrainian capital and is currently in intensive care. His wife, Natalya Sadyqova, who is also a journalist, was in the vehicle during the attack but was unharmed.
Ukrainian police said investigators established that Sadyqov was shot by two Kazakh suspects -- Altai Zhaqanbaev, born in 1988, and Meiram Qarataev, born in 1991 -- who were added to an international wanted list.
The Kazakh Prosecutor-General's Office said in a statement on June 22 that Zhakanbaev on June 21 "contacted the internal affairs bodies of the Republic of Kazakhstan on his own and was questioned about the circumstances of the case. On the same day, he was arrested on suspicion of committing this crime."
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Kazakh Authorities Arrest Suspect In Connection With Journalist's Shooting In Kyiv
The statement did not say where the arrest took place or in whose custody Zhakanbaev was, adding that it would not release more details "in the interest of the investigation."
It said investigations are under way "to determine the location" of the second suspect, Meiram Qarataev.
Sadyqova has said that Qarataev worked as a police officer in the northern Qostanai region. The Kazakh Interior Ministry, however, claimed that Qarataev had been sacked from the police force in 2019.
Ukraine's Interior Ministry said Zhaqanbaev and Qarataev arrived in Ukraine on June 2 from Poland, renting an apartment and buying a car in Kyiv, after which they surveyed Sadyqov's daily routines.
"On June 18, one of the suspects approached [Sadyqov's] car and shot him, while his accomplice was near the building to act as a lookout. After that, they fled the crime scene," the statement said, adding that the two suspects then left Ukrainian territory via the Ukrainian-Moldovan border.
It was not immediately known who may have ordered the attempt on Sadyqov's life.
The Sadyqovs, along with their children, moved to Kyiv in 2014 after Kazakh authorities launched a case against Sadyqova, who worked as a journalist for the independent Respublika newspaper at the time. She was accused of slander.
Natalya Sadyqova said the attempted assassination against her husband appeared to be a "professional" operation.
On June 19, Sadyqova told RFE/RL that, hours before the attack, she and her husband had issued a new video titled Toqaev Is Putin's Puppet on their YouTube channel.
The video criticizes Toqaev's "pro-Russian politics" and looks at the activities of Russian oligarchs and agents of influence in Kazakhstan, some of whom obtained Kazakh citizenship after Russia launched its ongoing invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
She added that Toqaev would have stood to gain from her husband's killing but did not present any evidence that connected the president in any way to the shooting.
Toqaev's spokesman, Berik Uali, said on June 21 that the Kazakh president "had ordered law enforcement entities to find the two suspects' whereabouts and undertake corresponding measures."
"Kazakhstan's side is ready to cooperate with Ukraine's law enforcement structures, including via Interpol," Uali said.
Sadyqov used to lead a branch of the opposition Azat Social Democratic Party in his native Aqtobe region in Kazakhstan's northwest until 2010. He later headed a group that was a major force for establishing a union to defend the rights of Kazakh workers at the Chinese-owned CNPC-Aktobemunaygaz oil company.