Court Leaves Former Mayor Charged With Rape Under Arrest

The Plovdiv Regional Court has not heeded the request for changing former mayor Ivan Evstatiev’s arrest sanction to a lighter penalty.

The request was reviewed on Tuesday afternoon.

According to the magistrates, there is real risk of him hiding or committing a crime. The ruling may be appealed within 7 days with the Plovdiv District Court.

The trial against Evstatiev, who has been indicted on charges of raping a16-year old girl after making her drunk, has been postponed to November 14. The reason for this is that both the defence and the prosecution want to question new witnesses.