Belarus’ presidential hopeful gets 14-year prison sentence
KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — The highest court in Belarus convicted an aspiring rival to the nation’s authoritarian president on corruption charges that he rejected as politically motivated and sentenced him Tuesday to 14 years in prison.
Viktor Babariko, the head of a commercial bank owned by Russian natural gas company Gazprom, had hoped to challenge President Alexander Lukashenko last year, but he was arrested before the country’s August 2020 presidential election and prohibited from registering as a candidate.