Ex-Belarusian Presidential Hopeful Babariko Moved To Another Facility After Trial

Ex-Belarusian Presidential Hopeful Babariko Moved to Another Facility After Trial

Viktor Babariko, a former presidential contender and ex-chairman of the board of Belgazprombank, a subsidiary of Russia's Gazprombank in Belarus, was transferred from a KGB pre-trial detention center to another facility in Minsk after the court delivered his prison sentence, Babariko's official Telegram channel reported on Wednesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 07th July, 2021) Viktor Babariko, a former presidential contender and ex-chairman of the board of Belgazprombank, a subsidiary of Russia's Gazprombank in Belarus, was transferred from a KGB pre-trial detention center to another facility in Minsk after the court delivered his prison sentence, Babariko's official Telegram channel reported on Wednesday.

On Tuesday Babariko was indicted for tax evasion, money laundering and corruption, and sentenced to a fourteen year prison term in a high security prison and a fine.

"Yesterday, around lunch, Viktor Babariko was transferred from the KGB [Committee for State Security] pre-trial detention center to pre-trial detention center Number 1.

This was announced by his lawyer Dmitry Laevsky after a meeting with him," the message said.

Babariko was detained by security forces in June 2020, two months before the presidential election, causing major unrest in Belarus. The former banker was accused of involvement in an organized crime group withdrawing money abroad. He denied all accusations, calling the court's ruling politically motivated Babariko intended to run against incumbent Alexander Lukashenko, whose victory is still contested by the opposition and many Western countries.