A shocking development has emerged in western Kazakhstan after authorities discovered the bodies of two children whose parents were earlier found murdered.

The grim discovery has intensified an already disturbing case that has gripped the country for months, The Caspian Post reports via Kazakh media.

The bodies of Nauryz Mukangaliev and Miramgul Karabalina, who had been listed as missing, were found on the outskirts of Atyrau. Investigators say the remains were buried in the yard of a house where the main suspect, Sultan Sarsemaliev, previously lived with his wife.

Preliminary reports indicate that during investigative actions Sarsemaliev confessed to killing the children. He reportedly told investigators that he buried their bodies in the yard of a rented house located in the Geolog microdistrict.

The search for the missing children had been ongoing since December. Police officers and members of the National Guard were involved in the operation. Authorities even set up a mobile headquarters at the site and searched the house and surrounding areas using special equipment, including ground-penetrating radar. However, the initial search efforts failed to locate the bodies.

On February 24, the suspects were detained on Indonesia’s Lombok Island. They were later extradited and brought to Atyrau, where investigators are continuing questioning and forensic procedures.

The case had already shocked the region earlier this year. In early January, the bodies of the children’s parents were discovered in a shed in the yard of their home in the Kyzylkogin district of the Atyrau region. The family had disappeared in November 2025 under unclear circumstances.

Neighbors said the son disappeared first. Later, relatives told people in the village that the entire family had supposedly left to seek medical treatment - a claim that now appears to have been part of a tragic cover-up.