Bulgaria's Military Court of Appeal suspended Monday the trial against former Sofia traffic police chief Iliya Iliev, who is charged with malfeasance in office.

Military prosecutors have accused Iliev for using his position to help 11 offenders escape trials for drink-driving between January and May 2006.

The drivers Iliev allegedly covered for, were caught with blood alcohol content above 1,2 per mille, which qualifies such incidents as a criminal offence.

He stripped them of licences and imposed fines, thus helping them avoid criminal indictment, prosecutors claim.

But the judges decided to postpone hearings in order to hear the testimony of one more witness, requesting also more data from the traffic police's records.

The court set the date of the next hearing for December 17.

In August, Iliya Iliev was sacked from his job as Sofia traffic police chief for using his position to aid and abet his son in an illegal registration of import cars scheme.

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