Sofia Court Orders Re-Arrest of Suspect under EAW

The presence of police brutality during Klenovski's arrest has not been cleared conclusively. File photo

Stefan Klenovski, who was placed under house arrest Tuesday, has been re-arrested, according to his father, Ivan Klenovski.

In a Wednesday interview for private TV channel NTV, he explained that his son's lawyer, Ivan Kotsev, had called late on Tuesday to say that Stefan Klenvoski had been issued a new remand measure, detention for up to 72 hours.

"At this stage we know no details, we are just waiting," Ivan Klenovski said on TV.

The Sofia District Police Directorate confirmed the new remand measure and explained that it had been issued in connection with other charges.

Stefan Klenovski's arrest on the evening of January 27 was accompanied by accusations of his family of police brutality, which Valeri Yordanov, head of the Sofia District Police Department refuted outright.

However, CCTV footage of the arrest, which took place at a children's establishment in a shopping center in Sofia, shows the detainee being given slaps in the face at a point when he has already been rendered powerless.

Klenovski's wife, Ilyana, complained to journalists that her husband had been beaten and cursed during the arrest in front of many children, including their 7-year-old son who had been celebrating his birthday.

On Wednesday, Ivan Kotsev told journalists that his client had not even been able to reach home but had been returned to a police precinct.

The lawyer explained that the new charges were over the fake ID card and drivers' license Klenovski had had on him at the time of the arrest.

Klenovski's defender stressed the absurdity of the actions against his client and assured he had had no plans to go into hiding.

Klenovski had a European Arrest Warrant (EAW) issued for him in connection with a 2011 police operation codenamed Shock held against a crime ring specialized in debit and credit card fraud and money laundering.

The Sofia City Court placed him under house arrest on Tuesday.

The remand measure was issued by Miroslava Todorova, Chair of the Bulgarian Judges Association (BJA), who was recently accused by Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov of patronizing organized crime and of incompetence.

Todorova explained the remand measure with the facts that Klenovski was the father of four, had a job and no prior convictions.

The judge, who is likely to file a libel lawsuit against Tsvetan Tsvetanov over the defamatory remarks, said that it was up to the Interior Ministry to oversee the implementation of the remand measure, which was why she had no doubts that Klenovski would go into hiding.

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