The acquittal of two men, reputed to be the biggest mafia bosses in Bulgaria, by a Sofia court will make society believe there is no hope for a change in this country, the interior minister has said.

“In situations like this the society loses the little hope that it has for some kind of change, for settling the scores with the figures from the transition period, who brought the country to such a helpless state,” Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov commented a day after the ruling.

“It is all a question of mentality and responsibility, a question that continues to lie heavy on the shoulders of the justice system. What is important for me is the European Commission, Europol and Eurojust. I pray to God that the key figures that should be arrested get caught across Europe so that Bulgaria becomes part of the justice that the European Union aspires to,” the minister said.

Tsvetanov pointed out that the arguments of the country should be carefully considered and called on all Bulgarian citizens to make “their own conclusions about the Bulgarian justice system.”

Krasimir and Nikolay Marinov, also known as the Marguin brothers, were charged with plotting three murders. The prosecutor's office had demanded the maximum prison sentence for each of them - 22 years in prison.

Krasimir Marinov pleaded not guilty to the charges, while his brother Nikolay was tried in absentia after he disappeared earlier this year.

The case has been dragging on for nearly five years already.