Bulgarian 'Octopus' 'Receives Support' from Late Ivan Slavkov

Shady businessman and former DANS employee of the State Agency for National Security, Aleksei Petrov, has voiced strong political ambitions since his release from jail in October, 2010. Photo by BGNES

The initiative committee, which nominated the late Ivan Slavkov to run for president, announced Tuesday it would now support Aleksei Petrov and his election campaign team.

Ivan Slavkov, son-in-law of totalitarian dictator, Todor Zhivko, former athlete and public figure, passed away on May 1, and the said committee had made the decision to not have a new nomination after consulting with Petrov's own initiative committee - "Unity and Team Work"

In the beginning of February, Petrov's initiative committee with its coordinator Professor, Milen Semkov, announced that the team to participate in the elections for President of Bulgaria includes Aleksei Petrov, Nikolay Georgiev, and "a respected lady whose name will be revealed later, over fears of repressions."

In the beginning of May, the name of the lady was reported as Maria Simeonova along with information that the committee has a group of 11 consultants, proven experts in different sectors of public practices.

Aleksei Petrov says the top task of the team would be to overcome the socio-economic crisis in Bulgaria and unite its citizens in stopping the "the cold civil war and the exhausting 20-year-long transition period."

Shady businessman and former employee of the State Agency for National Security (DANS), Aleksei Petrov, is one of the most controversial figures of the last 20 years. He was arrested in February 2010, in a special police operation codenamed "Octopus," after being investigated on a number of organized crime charges. He spent 9 months in jail before being released on house arrest and later on own recognizance.

Since the release, Petrov has not been shy about political ambitions, particularly running in the presidential race against Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov.

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