Almazbek Atambayev still refuses to participate in court hearings

Former president of Kyrgyzstan Almazbek Atambayev still refuses to participate in court hearings. His lawyer Zamir Jooshev told journalists.
He noted that Almazbek Atambayev agreed to a trial without his participation.

"We will petition to continue the court proceedings without Almazbek Atambayev. He will not take part in trial of the case, since he believes that everything that happens is illegal," said the lawyer.
However, representatives of the defense of the former head of state do not exclude that the court may decide on the forced bringing of the accused to court.
"The fact that Atambayev refuses to leave the cell is a legal vacuum. We do not know how they will solve this. But Almazbek Atambayev should not be there," said lawyer Sergei Slesarev.
Recall, on September 11, Almazbek Atambayev refused to leave his cell to participate in preliminary hearing.
The case on illegal release of the kingpin Aziz Batukaev was resumed in January 2019. The accused are doctors and laboratory assistants, who diagnosed the crime boss with cancer. In addition, former officials and deputies are also involved in the case.
Earlier, the Ministry of Internal Affairs reported that Almazbek Atambayev's direct involvement in the release of the kingpin was found out. The former president was a witness in the case. On August 9, he was charged with corruption within the case.
Almazbek Atambayev is accused of particularly serious crimes - violence against law enforcement agencies, murder, hostage taking, riots, corruption. He will be kept in the SCNS pre-trial detention center until October 26.