2nd Bulgaria Supreme Magistrate Resigns over Corruption Saga

Ivan Dimov (L) is the second VSS member, who resigned after his name came up in an alleged corruption scheme. Photo by BGNES

The member of Bulgaria's Supreme Judicial Council (VSS), Ivan Dimov, finally and officially submitted his resignation Tuesday.

Last Thursday Dimov retracted his earlier decision to resign from his post over his proven connection with the man known as “Krasio from Pleven.” The latter is an individual who, allegedly, offered magistrates to secure their appointment to high ranking positions through the vote of the VSS in exchange for EUR 200 000 in cash.

Dimov is one of the three VSS members, whose names were announced by Chief Prosecutor, Boris Velchev, as people, who had Krasio's phone number on their phone logs.

In an open letter, Dimov said last week that his name and professional honor have been subjected to an absurd and baseless discrimination over a few private phone calls and explained it was “suggested” to him that he should resign.

The committee in charge of probing the case reached the conclusion that two of the three magistrates have hurt the prestige of the judicial power and have violated ethical rules, something that requires their dismissal from high-ranking magistrates’ posts. The probe found that Stoiko Stoev, whose resignation was accepted by VSS, had 212 phone calls with Krasio, while Ivan Dimov had 33.

Dimov's refusal to resign put the VSS in a unprecedented situation because the Council does not have the authority to fire members, who have been appointed through a parliamentary quota.

Last week VSS sent a letter to the Speaker of the Parliament, Tsetska Tsacheva, informing her that Dimov had violated the prestige of the judicial system and the only way to remove him is for 48 Members of the Parliament to propose his dismissal.

Dimov was appointed a VSS member through the quota of the ethnic Turkish Movement for Rights and Freedoms Party (DPS).

More about the resignations and the “Krasio” VSS scandal read here.

In addition to Dimov and Stoev, a prosecutor and a magistrate from the Black Sea city of Burgas also resigned over alleged connections with "Krasio."

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