Bulgarian 'Galevi' Mobster Pair Fined for On Air Insult

Angel Hristov (left) and Plamen Galev (right), aka the Galevi Brothers, pictured after they heard their sentences of 5 and 7 years in jail respectively. Photo by BGNES

The Regional Court in the western city of Kyustendil declared Plamen Galev guilty in a claim he had insulted local politicians during a regional TV program.

Together, with his partner Angel Hristov, they will pay BGN 4 000 each in damages to the claimants.

The magistrates decided that Galev had supported Hristov's on air statements where he called Milen Popov and Metodi Stoynev, municipal councilors from the far-right, nationalist Ataka party, idiots and clowns.

Hristov and Galev, known as the Galevi brothers (they don't have a family relation) are alleged to be two of Bulgaria's most notorious gangsters.

In November 2010, the Regional Court in their hometown of Dupnitsa declared only Hristov guilty and sentenced him to pay a fine in the amount of BGN 4 500 along with Court expenses and BGN 2 000 to each of the claimants.

The Kyustendil Court ruled Tuesday that Galev is also to pay BGN 2 000 to each Popov and Stoynev and Court expenses.

Their lawyer says he was surprised by the rule and attributed it to a check from the European Commission, currently going on at the Kyustendil Court.

Popov and Stoynev expressed satisfaction from the magistrates' decision, but vowed to sue the State in the Human Rights Court in Strasbourg over the fact the trial had been dragged on for 3 years.

In the beginning of July 2011, the Sofia Appellate Court surprisingly reversed the trial against Galevi, sentencing them to a total of 12 years in jail - Plamen Galev to 7 years in prison, and Angel Hristov – to 5.

In addition, Galev was sentenced to a fine of BGN 10 000 and confiscation of 1/3 of his properties and assets, and Hristov – to a fine of BGN 7000, and confiscation of 1/4 of his properties and assets for the benefit of the state.

Back in November 2010, the Regional Court in the southwestern city of Kyustendil acquitted them of all charges – including heading an organized crime group, racketeering, and extortion on the grounds with they were being tried on rumors, not real evidence.

Four other men were also sentenced as members of the organized crime group led by Galevi.

In February 2011, the Chair of the Regional Court in the southwestern Bulgarian city of Kyustendil, Miroslav Nachev, published his motives for the acquittal of the notorious pair of alleged mafia bosses from the town of Dupnitsa listed on 108 pages.

The publication was released after Judge Nachev was called by the Supreme Judicial Council (VSS) to give explanations about the delay of writing the motives. He had had a December 4 deadline, as provided by the Penal Code.

Nachev has offered the explanation that case has been very cumbersome with 150 interrogated witnesses and 12 volumes of documentation and that as the Court Chair he also had to prepare the annual report at that exact same time – the end of 2010.

The two alleged mafia bosses are believed to hold the citizens of Dupnitsa on a leash, as their jobs and prosperity depend on the two burly former policemen with shady background and businesses.

The Galevi trial, launched in September 2009, came in the wake of a large-scale and flashy raid by what appeared to be the state army, which rummaged offices, auto-houses and apartments in the capital Sofia, Pernik and Dupnitsa.

In mid-June 2009, the Galevi brothers walked out of jail after both were allowed to run at the general elections and thus receiving immunity from prosecution. They failed to win seats in the 41st General Assembly, but were still free on bail.

In the aftermath of the rule, a journalist from a Bulgarian newspaper, who has exposed the criminal activities of the pair, told Novinite.com she feared for her life following their acquittal.