The Tunisian authorities will auction property owned by former dictator Ben Ali valued at between 8 and 11 million euros. The auction will take place tonight at the Cleopatre exhibition space in Gammarth, it will include over 30 cars with a Maybach, two Lamborghini’s, a Porsche Panamera, a Rolls Royce and an Aston Martin all on offer.
A website has been set up to highlight some of the personal affects. The cars include a Maybach 62 with grey paint work, an Aston Martin Vanquish, a Bentley Continental GT, a BMW 740Li, a Mercedes-Benz CL65 AMG, a Porsche Panamera 4S, a Cadillac Escalade, a Mercedes-Benz S500, a Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder, a Mercedes-Benz CL600, a Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren, a BMW 650i
Ben Ali was the former President of Tunisia. He was appointed Prime Minister in October 1987 and ruled through to January 2011 when he fell victim to the Arab uprisings. He now lives in Saudi Arabia in exile while subject to an international arrest warrant, charging him for money laundering and drug trafficking.
Ben Ali and his wife were sentenced in their absence to 35 years in prison on 20 June 2011. In June 2012, Tunisian courts added a second sentence for their former president, sentencing him to life imprisonment for inciting violence and murder.
Items were available to view from yesterday. During the January 2011 uprising a great deal of looting took place, the items for sale this weekend came into the government’s possession via the court system. The auction demonstrates just a fraction of Ben Ali’s possessions.
The government is currently looking to offload Ben Ali’s Sidi Dhrif palace along with shareholdings in a bank, two car importers and a cement plant. Tunisia is facing increasing financial pressure and the sale represents a small part of the plan to rebuild.
Of course, a lot of the Ben Ali wealth has already been destroyed.
