A court in Penza, Russia has confiscated 18 luxury watches that belonged to former governor Ivan Belozertsev, as part of the proceedings following his conviction for bribery in January 2024. The confiscated items include two Rolex watches valued at 4.5 million and 2.5 million rubles respectively, bringing the total value of the seized accessories to 9.6 million rubles. The General Prosecutor's Office had filed a petition requesting the confiscation, alleging that the expensive items were purchased by Belozertsev with illegally obtained income.
Besides the watches, Belozertsev's assets also include silver ingots. The court's decision to confiscate the watches and other items is part of the efforts to recover more than 8.4 billion rubles in damages and fines resulting from the corruption case. Another individual implicated in the case is former senator Boris Shpigel, who was convicted as a bribe-giver. Both Belozertsev and Shpigel were also fined 450 million rubles.
The court's ruling follows the decision by Russian authorities to declare several organizations as extremist and ban their activities. The list includes the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), led by Alexei Navalny, the Navalny Headquarters, the National Bolshevik Party, Jehovah's Witnesses, the Army of the Will of the People, the Russian All-National Union, the Movement Against Illegal Immigration, and the Right Sector, among others. Several international media outlets and online platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, The Insider, and Meduza, have also been designated as foreign agents or banned in Russia.
