Kazakhstan: 'Dead' man shows up at home months after burial
What's the story
In an unsettling situation for the Supygaliev family living in the port city of Atyrau in Kazakhstan, a family member who had been buried two months earlier showed up at their doorstep on Tuesday.
The man, Aigali Supygaliev, had been proclaimed dead by authorities based on DNA tests, and a death certificate had been issued.
He had been missing since June.
Here's more.
Quote
Aigali's family nearly had a 'heart attack' seeing him return
"When Uncle Aigali walked through the door hale and hearty two months after we'd buried him, my daughter Saule nearly dropped dead of a heart attack," said Aigali's brother, Esengali Supygaliev, to Kazakh news site Akz.kh.
'Death'
Aigali had been declared dead with a 99.2% probability
63-year-old Aigali went missing on a June morning and did not return.
A couple of months later, charred human remains were found, and DNA testing confirmed with an accuracy of 99.2% that the remains were Aigali's.
A death certificate was issued, and the Supygaliev family held a funeral in the traditional Kazakh fashion to mourn Aigali's passing.
Two months later, Aigali showed up.
Explanation
If Aigali wasn't dead, where was he?
It has now been found that Aigali, who reportedly has a habit of wandering off, had taken up an offer for work at a nearby village from a man he had met at the market on the fateful day of his disappearance.
Having finished his work, he has now returned.
Presumably, Aigali could not be contacted by his family, and the discovery of the remains led them to believe that Aigali was dead.
Legal action?
The Supyagalievs might take legal action against the authorities
Following the declaration of Aigali's death by authorities, the Supygalievs paid for his tombstone, commissioned a stone shrine in his honor, and even returned two months of pension for the time that Aigali was "dead".
Now, they are considering taking legal action against the authorities.
The forensic examiner who confirmed Aigali's death, however, has maintained that her analysis was 99.2% accurate.
"...but you must never forget that other 0.8%," she said.