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The Krychau District Court has found the former director general of an energy company guilty of accepting bribes and committing large-scale fraud.
According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, the defendant was sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment, fined 3,000 basic units (135,000 Belarusian rubles), and barred from holding positions involving organisational, managerial or administrative responsibilities for five years. He was also ordered to repay more than 200,000 Belarusian rubles, while US$1,100 was confiscated.
According to the prosecution, during the company’s 2018 procurement procedure for equipment for a thermal power plant, the former executive promised representatives of a commercial company that he would lobby their interests and secure their victory in the tender. In fact, he was not supposed to participate in the tender commission’s deliberations.
The commercial company ultimately won the tender, although the director general did not actually influence the outcome of the procurement procedure. In 2020, he received US$80,000 for the services he had claimed to provide.
“Between 2023 and 2025, the senior executive repeatedly accepted bribes in foreign currency from representatives of another commercial company in exchange for ensuring payment for supplies of power engineering equipment. The total amount exceeded US$7,000,” the prosecution added.
In court, the man partially admitted his guilt. He denied committing fraud and denied accepting a bribe in one of the alleged episodes.
The verdict has not yet entered into legal force and may be appealed.