Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2024 All Rights Reserved

Bulgaria's ex-PM Borissov released after 24 hours in custody

| updated on 3/19/22 10:21 AM
Photo: BGNES

Prime Minister Kiril Petkov said the release of Boyko Borissov, Vladislav Goranov and Sevdelena Arnaudova from custody was a "sabotage of the Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Bulgaria under the leadership of Mr. Geshev". At a joint briefing with Minister of Interior Boyko Rashkov, PM Petkov said that "the prosecutor's office was once again behaving like a lawyer when it comes to people accused of corruption. According to the Prime Minister, important documents were concealed and information that is well-known and already available to the European Prosecutor's Office is being ignored. According to Petkov, the activity of institutions that try to combat corruption in this country is being hampered. "There will be very clear information available at EU level on what they did," he added.

Minister of Interior Boyko Rashkov said the prosecutor's office had done everything possible to stop the work of a service in the Ministry of Interior so that it could not clarify whether any of the detainees had committed crimes. According to Rashkov, the prosecutor's office has quickly drawn conclusions about a case that has just begun

Previously, Bulgaria's former Prime Minister Boyko Borissov was released from custody by the General Directorate of the National Police. Apparently calm, Borissov said that no charges had been filed against him. Former Finance Minister Vladislav Goranov and Borisov's PR Sevdelina Arnaudova were also released from custody. Borissov's lawyer Menko Menkov clarified that the reason for the 24-hour detention indicated extortion, but did not say which person was extorted, when, how and for what reasons.


Menkov added that the pre-trial proceedings were initiated by the Ministry of Interior on March 17 under the conditions of urgency, but this was an inspection initiated on a signal from December 10. According to her, Borissov came to give explanations, and the signal was based on a printout from the media.
Shortly after the release of the detainees, a spokesman for the Sofia City Prosecutor's Office said the case had not been reported in its entirety and that an additional analysis would be made. The circumstances of this case have long been known. This is the reason why no charges have been filed at this stage, as it would be in violation of the law.
In the event of new circumstances, charges could be filed, the spokesperson of the Sofia City Prosecution Office added.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

More from category

Weather forecast for Monday: Precipitation stops but temperatures remain low

On Monday, there will still be showers in the eastern half of the country. It will stop raining by the evening. Clouds will break in the western part of the country. It will be mostly sunny in Southwestern Bulgaria in the afternoon. There will be..

published on 9/29/24 5:20 PM

The tambura, gadulka and shepherd's flute may soon disappear from the music stages

Traditional folk instruments, including the tambura, gadulka and kaval (shepherd's flute) are expected to disappear from Bulgarian stages within 10 to 15 years if no attention is paid to folk music performers, shows an analysis from a field study..

published on 9/29/24 4:28 PM
Caretaker Premier Dimitar Glavchev

The government will gradually evacuate Bulgarians from Lebanon

The government will gradually evacuate Bulgarians from Lebanon. Preparation for the air evacuation of Bulgarian citizens wishing to leave Lebanon is underway. The decision was taken at a meeting convened by caretaker Premier Dimitar Glavchev with the..

published on 9/29/24 4:03 PM