MINSK -- Belarusian authorities have put on auction possessions belonging to jailed former would-be Belarusian presidential candidate Viktar Babaryka.
The 59-year-old Babaryka was sentenced to 14 years in prison in July 2021 on charges of bribe-taking and money laundering that he and his supporters have said are political retribution for challenging authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka.
The organizer of the auction, BelYurZabespyachenne, placed nine watches for auction on its website that it said had been "impounded" from Babaryka.
The watch collection includes a Vacheron Constantin valued by BelYurZabespyachenne at more than $15,500, a Patek Philippe at $18,700, and a Zenith at $4,800. The auction is scheduled to start on September 13.
The website also carried pictures of other possessions listed as belonging to Babaryka that had been sold on auction already, including a Ford Fiesta car, shares in companies, and rifle scopes.
Babaryka, the former head of the Russian-owned Belgazprombank, was arrested in June 2020 as he was trying to register as a candidate to run against Lukashenka in a presidential vote critics and observers say was massively rigged.
Lukashenka was declared the winner of the August 2020 election, triggering protests by tens of thousands of Belarusians. The demonstrations lasted for months as Belarusians demanded that Lukashenka, in power since 1994, step down and hold fresh elections.
At Lukashenka's direction, security officials cracked down hard on demonstrators, arresting thousands and pushing most leading opposition figures out of the country.
Several protesters have been killed in the violence, and rights organizations say there is credible evidence of torture being used against some of those detained.
Lukashenka denies voter fraud and has refused to negotiate with the opposition led Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who supporters say actually won the August 2020 election. Tsikhanouskaya is currently residing in Lithuania.
Authorities in Minsk had impounded her two-bedroom apartment and sold it in an action in July for 203,687 rubles (around $80,740).