Bulgarian MEP: After US Sanctions EU May Well Suspend Funds for Bulgaria
The US sanctions under the Magnitsky Act imposed on six Bulgarians, including Delyan Peevski and Vasil Bozhkov, will have an impact on European policy approach to Bulgaria.
The Sofia City Court on Monday is expected to launch the trial against former Sofia Appellate Court chair Veselin Pengezov and other ex-officials over their alleged involvement in a EU funds fraud.
Last spring, while still in office, Pengezov was initially charged with four counts of embezzlement, over irregularities in EU-funded projects which prosecutors allege are tantamount to a fraudulent scheme.
A month later charges were also brought against Maria Divizieva, at that time Chief of Staff of Bulgarian PM (2013-2014) Plamen Oresharski, who allegedly facilitated the presentation of false statements in a report under the same operatinal program.
In April of this year, the Sofia District Military Appellate Prosecutor’s Office pressed charges against Pengezov (head of the Sofia Military Appellate Court at the time of the scheme) and Divizieva, who was then head of the Finance Ministry Directorate in charge of the operational program Administrative Capacity.
Others charged included the former Chair of the Sofia Military Appellate Court Petko Petkov (at the time deputy to Pengezov), the former Deputy Chair of the Military Appellate Court Vladimir Dimitrov, and several other officials including Atina Mavridis, Petya Gergova, Lyudmil Simeonov, and Krum Simeonov.
Prosecutors' actions in that case were related to the selection of contractors for public procurement launched under Operational Program Administrative Capacity - the one under which the scam is thought to have operated.
A female doctor from Burgas has died, two months after being severely beaten by her former partner and colleague during a celebration
Three Ukrainian nationals, aged 22, 24, and 25, have been detained by order of the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office in connection with the kidnapping of a 17-year-old Ukrainian boy in Sofia
In Thessaloniki, police officers intervened after hearing the cries of an 11-month-old baby left unattended on a balcony
A 20-year-old woman from the village of Kalitinovo, Stara Zagora Province, has been detained by police following a stabbing incident at a restaurant in Sunny Beach.
Tension gripped the Bulgarian city of Varna on Tuesday evening following the death of 36-year-old Yavor Georgiev
A total of 130 people are being removed from three illegal adult care facilities in Varna following an operation carried out Monday night - the third such action in recent weeks
Borderless Bulgaria: How Schengen Benefits Are Transforming Trade and Logistics
Bulgaria's Mortality Rate Remains Highest in Europe