Bulgarian Prosecutor Denies Probe against Agriculture Minister

Crime | December 8, 2010, Wednesday // 11:25|  views

Sofia City Deputy Prosecutor, Borislav Dzambazov, says an audit of the Agriculture Fund could be pending. Photo by BGNES

The Prosecutor's Office has not received a claim against Agriculture Minister, Miroslav Naydenov, filed by the ousted CEO of the State Agriculture Fund, Kalina Ilieva.

The information was reported Wednesday by the Sofia City Deputy Prosecutor, Borislav Dzambazov, in an interview for the Bulgarian National Radio, BNR.

Last week, the conservative Order, Law and Justice (RZS) party submitted with the Parliamentary anti-Corruption Committee a claim Naydenov had attempted to offer a bribe of BGN 200 000 to the new CEO, Svetoslav Simeonov, and took part in a scam for the draining of the Fund, which deals with EU SAPARD program payments. According to the conservatives, Ilieva had halted the draining and this became the reason for her dismissal.

Dzambazov further pointed out alerts about abuse at the Fund had not been the most numerous during Ilieva's term as previously reported, but the pick was registered in the beginning of 2009.

The Prosecutor also informed the probe over complaints of violations at the Fund, submitted by the opposition Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) is ongoing and an audit of the institution could be pending. BSP said months ago BGN 150 M from SAPARD had not been absorbed and must be paid from the State budget.

Meanwhile, it was reported that on December 2, police raided the home where Kalina Ilieva lives, but failed to find her notorious forged diploma. Ilieva told the authorities, the diploma was left in her office at the Agriculture Fund, according to the daily "24 Chassa" (24 Hours).

The police then asked the new CEO, Svetoslav Simeonov, to provide the diploma and were told a list of all documents in Ilieva's office was made at the time she was dismissed, but the diploma had not been found among them.

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Tags: Sofia City Deputy Prosecutor, Borislav Dzambazov, OLAF, Kalina Ilieva, Agriculture Fund, Miroslav Nyadenov, RZS, BSP

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