Bulgarian Judge: Galevi Brothers Were Tried on Rumors

The two alleged mafia bosses - Plamen Galev and Angel Hristov - are believed to hold the citizens of Dupnitsa on a leash. Photo by BGNES

The Chair of the Regional Court in the southwestern Bulgarian city of Kyustendil, Miroslav Nachev, published Tuesday his motives for the acquittal of the notorious pair of alleged mafia bosses from the town of Dupnitsa.

The motives in the trail of Plamen Galev and Angel Hristov aka The Galevi Brothers are listed on 108 pages.

The publication was released after Judge Nachev was called by the Supreme Judicial Council (VSS) to give explanations about the delay of writing the motives. It had a December 4 deadline, as provided by the Penal Code.

Nachev has offered the explanation that case has been very cumbersome with 150 interrogated witnesses and 12 volumes of documentation and that as the Court Chair he also had to prepare the annual report at that exact same time – the end of 2010.

"There is no proof beyond reasonable doubt the defendants, in different combination, have formed a common will and have been subject to such will to conduct criminal activities and to use threats in order to obtain benefits. The Court did not establish a reached agreement to carry out crimes.

The purpose of the group to execute certain crimes; to have an organization for these crimes must not only be subjective, but objective – it must be agreed upon by the participants. When there is the issue of a coordinated activity of two or more individuals (respectively three or more), the preliminary premeditation of the participants to act as a group must be proven. In this case, there was not any collected evidence for the above. The interpretation of rumors by some of the witnesses; the voicing of subjective opinions and hypotheses cannot be used as proof, according to the Penal Code," Judge Nachev writes.

On November 4, 2010, The Galevi Brothers were acquitted on charges of leading an organized crime group dealing with extortion and racketeering.

The two alleged mafia bosses are believed to hold the citizens of Dupnitsa on a leash, as their jobs and prosperity depend on the two burly former policemen with shady background and businesses.

The Galevi trial, launched in September last year, came in the wake of a large-scale and flashy raid by what appeared to be the state army, which rummaged offices, auto-houses and apartments in the capital Sofia, Pernik and Dupnitsa.

In mid-June last year, the Galevi brothers walked out of jail after both were allowed to run at the general elections and thus receiving immunity from prosecution. They failed to win seats in the 41st General Assembly, but were still free on bail.

In the aftermath of the rule, a journalist from a Bulgarian newspaper, who has exposed the criminal activities of the pair, told Novinite.com she feared for her life following their acquittal.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!