The Sofia City Court has granted permission for the issuance of a European Arrest Warrant for Bulgarian national Stoyan Mavrodiev, the former executive director of the Bulgarian Development Bank (BDB). The decision was made on November 25, following a request from the Sofia Prosecution Office, which had sought the warrant on November 11. Mavrodiev is facing charges of large-scale embezzlement linked to a 150 million leva loan granted by the BDB to the Roadway Construction company. His co-defendants in the case include company owner Rumen Gaytanski, known as "The Wolf," who is accused of being the instigator, and Ivan Georgiev, a company representative who is accused as an accessory.

The Sofia City Court emphasized that the alleged crime carries a prison sentence and that there are significant concerns regarding the possibility of Mavrodiev fleeing or committing further offenses. For these reasons, the court approved the European arrest warrant. Mavrodiev's appointed defender argued against the issuance of the warrant, but the decision remains subject to appeal.

Earlier in November, the case for the European Arrest Warrant had been presented to the Sofia City Court, which had scheduled a hearing to consider the request. Mavrodiev, who was declared a national fugitive in August 2024, is under investigation for approving an unsecured loan to Roadway Construction, a company connected to the controversial businessman Rumen Gaytanski. Gaytanski, who was arrested and later released on bail due to health reasons, is also facing charges. The investigation began after the Anti-Corruption Commission's alert in October 2022.

The loan in question was granted in 2019, but the BDB has been unable to recover most of the funds. According to Tsanko Arabadzhiev, the current executive director of the BDB, the bank has been able to recover only about 5 million of the 150 million leva loan. The BDB had already raised concerns about the loan with the relevant authorities in 2021.

Sources:

• Bulgarian News Agency (BTA)
• Bulgarian National Television (BNT)