Bulgarian Top Cop Denies Link to Controversial Judge's Appoitnment

Bulgarian Interior Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov has denied responsibility for the appointment of embattled Sofia City Court Chair Vladimira Yaneva. Photo by BGNES

Bulgarian Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov has denied extending protections to Vladimira Yaneva, a close friend of his whose controversial appointment as Sofia City Court Chair was overruled by the Supreme Administrative Court (VAS) on Thursday.

In his Friday address, Tsvetanov told journalists that Yaneva had been appointed by the Supreme Judicial Council (VSS), which had been constituted before the election of the current Parliament and GERB's coming to power.

"I do not think I should be blamed for this appointment," Tsvetanov remarked.

VAS' ruling on Yaneva's case was issued on November 03, way past the 30-day statutory deadline, amid rumors of VAS Chair Georgi Kolev attempting to influence the trial outcome by exerting pressure on the 3-judge panel.

The November 03 decision raised eyebrows of experts in the sphere because it was signed by two of the three judges hearing the case.

The third judge had refused to sign the decision, announcing a self-recusal from the case "after the panel of judges had come up with a pronouncement, the decision had been prepared and two of the three judges had already placed their signatures", VAS' act revealed.

VAS' decision can be appealed within 14 days, which Yaneva vowed to do.

Yaneva was appointed by VSS in a closed session in end-May.

Her scant 4 years of experience as a judge and her friendship with Tsvetanov triggered a scandal in the judiciary, including two resignations of VSS members and a protest campaign of the Union of Judges in Bulgaria (UJB) urging the entire "totally discredited" VSS to step down.

Yaneva was also revealed to have caused unreasonable delays in the embezzlement trial against the former executives of the municipal real estate company Sofiyski Imoti .

The SCC Court Chair was found to have bought properties from Sofiyski Imoti as a proxy of a company owned by her father.

At the time of the deal Yaneva had just been appointed junior judge, meaning that she signed the transaction in violation of the ban on magistrates engaging in commercial activity.

Yaneva was ultimately cleared of conflict-of-interest charges by the conflict-of-interest watchdog, while the prosecution decided not to interfere.

VSS has not yet come up with a pronouncement on the disciplinary action opened against her over unreasonable delays in a number of trials.

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