Bulgaria’s Ex-Interior Min Indicted for Obstructing Justice

Bulgaria's former Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov. Photo by BGNES

Former Bulgarian Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov has been officially charged Wednesday with obstruction of justice.

The indictment stems from Tsvetanov's refusal to endorse 6 prosecutor's requests to grant a permit for the use of special surveillance devices, SRS, during an investigation against Orlin Todorov, former head of Veliko Tarnovo's regional anti-mafia unit.

Prosecutors say he has violated the Special Surveillance Devices Act and the Penal Code by refusing the deployment of special surveillance devices.

The alleged violation was discovered during the investigation against former Interior Ministry official, the ex-Head of the Main Directorate for Combatting Organized Crime, GDBOP, Stanimir Florov, who is believed to be a close ally of Tsvetanov.

The former Interior Minister has written NO!!! (with three exclamation marks) on a 2009 request to use SRS against Todorov. Prosecutors say he might have been providing cover-up for the latter because he was friends with Florov as well.

Tsvetanov is already charged on a different count – for allowing unauthorized mass use of SRS. The probe in this case is still ongoing.

He was stripped from immunity as a Member of the Parliament over the probes.

The former Interior Minister, who is also the Deputy Chairman of the now-opposition, center-right Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria party, GERB, insists he is innocent, stressing the charges are groundless as every former and future Interior Ministry head could face similar ones.

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