A court in Penza, Russia, has confiscated 18 wristwatches belonging to former Penza region governor Ivan Belozertsev. The watches, including two Rolex worth 4.5 million and 2.5 million rubles respectively, were valued at a total of 9.6 million rubles. The court ruled that these valuable items were purchased by Belozertsev with illegally obtained income. The confiscation was ordered by the General Prosecutor's Office. Furthermore, additional proceedings have been initiated by bailiffs to recover over 8.4 billion rubles.
Belozertsev was sentenced to 12 years in prison in January 2024 for accepting bribes. Former senator Boris Spiegel, who was considered the bribe-giver in the case, was also convicted and sentenced to 11 years in prison, along with fines of 450 million rubles. However, Spiegel was later released due to health reasons.
