Mahiliou: Former public servant detained. He joined alternative candidate’s team
Uladzimir Dudarau, the coordinator of Viktar Babaryka’s initiative group in Mahiliou region, was detained on June, 11. A few years ago, Dudarau was in the civil service.
The initiative group has already hired a lawyer for the coordinator, Viktar Babaryka’s press service told belsat.eu. The details and reasons for the detention have not been reported.
Moreover, on Friday morning, the word has leaked out that Syarhei Karmyzau, another member of Babaryka’s initiative group in Mahiliou and the head of the local branch of Belgazprombank, was placed in detention.
The press service pledges support to the team and calls them to contact the headquarters in case of problims with law enforcement agencies.
In 2018, Uladzimir Dudarau was appointed Deputy Chairman of Mahiliou city executive committee. He was in charge of construction as well as housing and utilities sector. He left his post in October, 2019.
As reported earlier, wannabe presidential candidate Viktar Babaryka had been Chairman of Belgazprombank Board since 2000. On May 12, when he revealed his presidential ambitions, he voluntarily resigned from his senior management job. With over 260,000 signatures collected, Babaryka is currently taking the lead among alternative candidates.
On June 11, about 50 officers of the Financial Investigations Department (part of the State Control Committee) conducted a search in the head office of Belgazprombank in Minsk. The department opened a criminal case under Art. 243-2 (large-scale tax evasion) and Art. 235-2 (legalisation of particularly large sums of money obtained through crime). At the moment, Viktar Babaryka ‘has no procedural status in the investigation of the criminal case’, the committee’s press service told journalists.
Last week, president Alyaksandr Lukashenka hinted that one of the presidential hopefuls might be involved in fraud. He suggested Belarusian people ask the would-be candidate the following questions: “What is PrivatLeasing?” and “Where do you keep the money you fraudulently got in Belarus?” However, he failed to go into detail and give any name. In turn, Viktar Babaryka said that he knew PrivatLeasing company, since it was a long-time customer of Belgazprombank.
Moreover, the Belarusian leader claimed that private companies were allegedly firing those who refused to sign for alternative contenders in the upcoming election. On Wednesday, he ordered siloviki to ‘give a good dressing down to potbellied bourgeois’.
