Bulgarian Ex-Defense Min Acquitted in Yet Another Trial
Crime | March 21, 2013, Thursday| 649 views
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Former Defense Minister Nikolay Tsonev. File photo by BGNES
Sofia's Appellate Court has upheld the acquittal of former Bulgarian Defense Minister Nikolay Tsonev on abuse of office charges.
In this particular trial, the ex minister was tried because in the period February 12 – June 1, 2009, as a defense minister, he allegedly abused his power by allowing the purchase of an US assembly line for the construction of hangars, warehouses, army barracks, and for the supply and storage of food.
In October, the Sofia City Court cleared the former Defense Minister Nikolay Tsonev, former Chief Secretary of the Finance Ministry Tencho Popov, and Judge Petar Santirov, of bribery charges.
Tsonev, member of the former Three-Way Coalition Cabinet (2009-2009), was arrested in April 2010. He has been cleared of malfeasance charges for alleged crimes committed in 1999. The former Defense Minister was also acquitted on a count of criminal breach of trust committed in 1999 in his capacity as an employee of the Defense Ministry.
Tags: Nikolay Tsonev, Defense Minister, trial, abuse of office, malfeasance, bribery
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