Bulgarian Prisons Most Overcrowded in EU - Report

In the 2009-2010 period, Bulgaria had about 9 071 prisoners. File photo

Prisons in Bulgaria are the most overcrowded among those of all Member States of the European Union,.

The information was reported Tuesday by the Bulgarian news agency BTA.

On the backdrop on an EU average of 82%, comparing the capacity of the prisons with the number of people in them, Bulgaria stands at 155.6%. Latvia has the lowest ratio of 70%.

According to data of the International Center for Prison Studies at the London King's College, in the 2009-2010 period, Bulgaria had about 9 071 prisoners with 10.4% in preliminary detention; 2% of them were foreign citizens and 0.5% - minors.

The list of countries with highest number of foreigners, from countries outside the EU, kept behind bars, is led by Luxembourg, followed by Cyprus, Austria and Belgium.

Bulgaria ranks in the middle by the number of prisoners compared to the number of the population with 120 detainees per 100 000 people.

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