The apartment of Ukraine's First Lady, Olena Zelenska, in the temporarily occupied Crimea has allegedly been sold for over 44 million russian rubles. This was stated by the russian propagandist publication Izvestia, citing data from the Torgi system.
The "nationalized" apartment that belonged to the wife of the Ukrainian president was purportedly "auctioned" for 24.6 million rubles. The auction's winner was a woman who allegedly bid 44.356 million rubles for the penthouse in the Livadia settlement on the southern coast of the temporarily occupied Crimea.
Reportedly, the auction took place on Monday, October 30, with only two participants allowed.
The real estate in Crimea was acquired by the wife of Volodymyr Zelensky in April 2013, before the illegal annexation of Crimea. The family did not use this property, and the sales contract was registered in Kyiv.
In 2019, Reuters reported that the president's wife purchased a penthouse in Livadia for half of its market value; however, the Presidential Office denies this claim.
In the spring, the occupiers declared the "nationalization" of the apartment, which was registered to Olena Zelenska.
Sergei Aksyonov, the kremlin’s head of Crimea, stated that the proceeds from the sale of "nationalized" assets of Ukrainian citizens on the peninsula would finance russia's war against Ukraine.
On October 11, it was announced that the premises would be sold at auction.
As reported, a court in The Hague ordered russia to pay Naftogaz $5 billion for property in Crimea.