Bulgarian Top Prosecutor Admits No Progress in Corruption Fight

Bulgarian Chief Prosecutor, Boris Velchev, says corruption cases are difficult to plan. Photo by Sofia Photo Agency

Bulgaria's Prosecutor's Office does not have much to brag about when it comes to progress in cases against corruption, according to Chief Prosecutor, Boris Velchev.

Velchev spoke Tuesday, during a meeting with the leadership of the Supreme Court of Cassations (VKS), focused on work done so far on the recommendations included in the last report of the European Commission on Bulgaria's internal affairs and judicial system under the verification and cooperation mechanism.

Velchev, however, said that there is noted progress in cases connected to organized crime, pointing out the prosecution is aware who the organized crime figures and groups are, controls them together with the Interior Ministry, and acts when there is enough evidence collected.

"This is easier to plan, unlike corruption cases," he explained, stressing success in the later depends mainly on citizens refusing to pay bribes and turning to the authorities instead.

According to Velchev, the not-guilty verdicts in organized crime cases were 5%-6%, compared to 93%-94% in corruption ones.

The EC report included concrete recommendations for the Chief Prosecutor: to analyze the reasons for not-guilty verdicts in high-profile cases; to offer recommendations for future work and to appeal these verdicts when deeming the Court acted improperly.

The VKS Chair, Lazar Gruev, stated that when cases are monitored by Brussels, the share of the guilty verdicts was higher, stressing to analyze all exonerating Court rules was alarming since in all democratic societies they exist, and the analysis belongs to the magistrates in their motives.

He was backed by Velchev, who said that 100% guilty verdicts would make the existence of the Court senseless and the State – fascist.

Gruev stressed that all Courts and Prosecutor's Offices in the country are now working on the EC recommendations. He had assigned VKS judges to prepare summaries and analyses pertaining to high-profile organized crime, contraband, human trafficking, and corruption cases.

"Justice must be predictable and rule under common criteria. But it is important for the monitoring to be objective and unbiased," the VKS Chair said.

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