Bulgarian Connection Emerges in Viktor Bout's Trial

Crime | November 2, 2011, Wednesday // 13:36|  views

A Bulgarian national, identified as Peter Mirchev, has been implicated in the trial against accused Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, widely dubbed "the Merchant of Death" and often referred to as the most notorious of global arms traffickers.

A long-time South African associate and a key witness in the trial, Andrew Smulian, has recognized the Bulgarian and identified him as Bout's main weapons supplier in Bulgaria.

Bout, 44, is charged with a wide range of counts, including conspiracy to kill Americans, attempting to sell arms to undercover federal agents, wire fraud and violating U.N. Security Council sanctions.

If convicted, he faces life in prison.

A jury will reconvene Wednesday for a second day of deliberations in the trial of accused Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

It is still unclear what may happen to Bout's Bulgarian agent if his role in the scheme is proven, but a check in the archives shows that he has long been followed closely by the US government.

His name appears in the order of 2004 to the U.S. Treasury for annual sanctions against Bulgarian companies "Beta" and "KAS Engineering."

Mirchev was manager of the offshore branch of the latter in Gibraltar, as well as head of the new company "BMG-M", registered after "KAS" was stripped of its license.

At the beginning of Bout's trial, the prosecutors announced that among the evidence against him there is an email from "KAS Engineering", but no details were disclosed.

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Tags: Bulgaria, Bulgarian, traffickers, arms, Bout, Viktor, Russian, South African

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