The trial of former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis has just opened, with the potential to rock the political scene of the Central European country.
The case revolves around whether or not the billionaire businessman, 68, illicitly used small business funds amounting to approximately $2 million to develop a hotel attached to his multibillion-dollar business empire 15 years ago, according to the Guardian. The trial is highly controversial due to Babis’s political standing, as the former prime minister is the head of the populist ANO party. ANO holds a wide lead in opinion polls, according to Bloomberg, and Babis is likely planning to run for president in January.
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“Of course it was a politically motivated criminal investigation,” Babis said, according to CTK News, but he maintained his faith in the Czech legal system, saying, “I believe that the court will make a decision not under pressure, but fairly.”
“I have never stolen anything in my life. The subsidy was returned, no one was corrupt, no one earned anything,” he said of the charges.
Babis was able to avoid indictment for years in connection to the incident, which allegedly occurred a decade and a half ago, due to his diplomatic immunity, but he was stripped of such status when he lost the general election in 2021.
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If Babis is found guilty, Czech voters would lose a front contender for a leading election just months away. Babis faces five to 10 years in prison if convicted.
Babis, who was prime minister from 2017 to 2021, has a net worth of $4 billion, mostly made from the fertilizer business, according to Forbes.
