Bulgaria Self-Proclaimed Roma Tsar Owes Millions in Taxes
Crime | September 29, 2011, Thursday // 12:05| viewsKiril Rashkov, who has got a major tab running with the Bulgarian Revenue Service to the tune of BGN 6 M in unpaid taxes, is pictured here in his notorious gilded throne. Photo by 24 Hours daily
A notorious self-proclaimed Roma tsar, whose clan's impunity triggered unprecedented protests across the country over the last few days, will be officially charged with tax evasion, prosecutors have said.
Kiril Rashkov will be held accountable for tax crimes amounting to at least BGN 6 M only from his alcohol production and trade business, according to local media reports.
Believed to be one of the richest men in Bulgaria, who piled up his huge wealth thanks to unscrupulous trade in bootleg alcohol and votes, Rashkov has denied any wrongdoing.
Earlier in the week the authorities froze all assets, real estate and stakes in companies owned by Rashkov, who is also believed to be the mastermind of a murder of a nineteen-year-old boy.
The teenager Angel Petrov was struck and killed in the village of Katunitsa by a mini-bus driver linked to the controversial local Roma leader, triggering a wave of protests and fueling ethnic tensions.
During the clashes that followed a 16-year-old boy collapsed and later died in hospital due to heart failure.
The unprecedented for Bulgaria events have widely been described as ethnic clashes, an allegation initially denied by the protesters.
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